http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2010/09/07/parole-hearing-for-john-lennons-killer-this-week/
September 7, 2010
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) John Lennon's killer was again denied parole in
New York, nearly 30 years after gunning down the ex-Beatle outside
the musician's New York City apartment building.
A parole board decided not to release Mark David Chapman after
interviewing him Tuesday by teleconference at Attica Correctional
Facility in upstate New York.
It was Chapman's sixth appearance before the board since becoming
eligible for parole in 2000. He will be eligible again in 2012.
Chapman, 55, had been scheduled to appear last month, but the hearing
was postponed by parole officials, who said at the time they were
awaiting additional information. They did not elaborate.
After Tuesday's decision, the board wrote to Chapman that it remains
concerned about "the disregard you displayed for the norms of our
society and the sanctity of human life when, after careful planning,
you travelled to New York for the sole purpose of killing John Lennon."
The panel said "release remains inappropriate at this time and
incompatible with the welfare of the community."
Among those who have opposed his release is Lennon's now 77-year-old
widow, Yoko Ono, who said last month that she believed Chapman is a
potential threat to her family and perhaps himself.
A call seeking comment from a spokesman for Ono was not immediately returned.
The former maintenance man from Hawaii was sentenced to 20 years to
life in prison after firing five shots outside Lennon's Manhattan
building on Dec. 8, 1980, hitting Lennon four times in front of his
wife and others. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
At his last parole hearing, in 2008, Chapman told the panel he was
ashamed and sorry for what he had done and had since developed a
deeper understanding of the value of a human life.
He said he had been seeking notoriety and fame to counter feelings of failure.
After that interview, parole officials noted that Chapman had not
been disciplined in prison since 1994 and said he had adjusted to his
incarceration. But they denied release "due to concern for the public
safety and welfare," according to the written decision.
Chapman was informed of the panel's most recent finding a few hours
after the hearing. The state Division of Parole is expected to
release a transcript of the interview within the next several days.
Lennon would have turned 70 this October.
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