John Lennon’s killer denied parole for 9th time

John Lennon's killer, Mark David Chapman, will stay in jail for two more years after his request for parole was denied for the ninth time. He was denied parole on August 24 by a three-member state parole board panel, reported People magazine. Chapman, 61, who shot Lennon dead in New York City on December 8, 1980, is currently serving 20 years to life in the maximum-security Wende Correctional Facility in Alden, New York, after pleading guilty in 1981 to second-degree murder.   In its decision, the parole panel wrote, "The Board of Parole commends your acceptance of responsibility and vivid characterization of your crime as premeditated, selfish and evil."

  But despite noting Chapman's "network of support" and his strong "institutional records and rehabilitative efforts," the panel said many favorable factors outweighed "the premeditated and celebrity seeking nature of the crime. From our interview and review of your records, we find that your release would be incompatible with the welfare of society and would so deprecate that seriousness of the crime as to undermine respect for the law.  

Source: PTI