8/18/2008

in

Mark David Chapman was denied parole on August 12.

Meghan Moynihan

The man who murdered John Lennon, Mark David Chapman, told parole officers that he is ashamed of his actions during yet another unsuccessful plea for a prison release, the Associated Press reports.  
  
A parole board interviewed Chapman on August 12. He was almost instantly denied a release-his fifth effort for parole. A transcript of the interview was made public on Tuesday.  
  
The 53-year-old convict told the parole board that he has come to understand how serious his actions were, saying about himself, "I recognized that that 25-year-old man, I don't think he really appreciated the life that he was taking, that this was a human being. . . . I feel now at 53 I have grown into a deeper understanding of what a human life is. I have changed a lot."  
  
Similar to previous interviews, Chapman stated that his murder of Lennon was motivated by a desire to achieve fame and no longer be seen as a failure.  
  
"I would be something other than a nobody, and that was my reasoning at the time," he stated.  
  
Sentenced to 20 years to life after pleading guilty to murder, Chapman has spent 28 years in prison thus far. This latest decision by the parole board means that he will remain in New York's Attica Correctional Facility for at least two additional years.  
  
The board claimed that its decision came down to "concern for the public safety and welfare."  
  
His next scheduled appearance before a parole board is scheduled for August of 2010.