It’s been over 20 years since Mark David Chapman murdered Beatles musician John Lennon outside his home in New York City. Now 70 years old, Chapman has been denied parole for the crime for the 14th time.
Posted in public online records, per People, the parole board denied his request on August 27, and he would remain in the Green Haven Correctional Facility in Beekman, N.Y., according to the New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
Chapman killed Lennon on December 8, 1980, as the singer was returning to his city apartment with his wife, Yoko Ono. On the day of the murder, Lennon had earlier signed Chapman’s copy of the album Double Fantasy. He was later convicted of second-degree homicide and sentenced to serve 20 years to life for the crime.
He’s appeared in front of the parole board many times throughout his sentence, with his most recent having been in 2024. Since his imprisonment, Chapman has shown remorse over his actions, especially to Yoko, who never remarried after Lennon’s death.
At one of his hearings, he explained his reasoning was simply because Lennon was incredibly famous and Chapman was seeking a sense of self-glory. He called his actions “selfish” and “despicable.”
“I deserve zero, nothing. At the time I deserved the death penalty. When you knowingly plot someone’s murder and know it’s wrong and you do it for yourself, that’s a death penalty right there, in my opinion,” said Chapman at his hearing in 2020.
Yoko has gone against Chapman’s parole many times and expressed her fears of his release, bringing back hurtful memories. She also commented on the possibility of being given parole and leaving jail could incite further violence.
She expressed that Chapman didn’t appear to feel guilt over his actions, and worried he could hurt her and her son Sean, who she shared with Lennon. Chapman’s next parole hearing is scheduled for 2027.
Lennon is survived by his two sons, Sean, 49, and Julian, 62.
