John Lennon's murderer denied parole for 12th time

Mark David Chapman, now 67, shot and killed former Beatle outside his Manhattan apartment building in 1980

A woman lays flowers at the Strawberry Fields memorial to John Lennon in Central Park, New York. EPA

The man who shot and killed John Lennon outside his Manhattan apartment building in 1980 has been denied parole for a 12th time, New York corrections officials said on Monday.

Mark David Chapman, 67, appeared before a parole board at the end of August, the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision said.

Chapman shot and killed Lennon on the night of December 8, 1980, as he and Yoko Ono were returning to their Upper West Side apartment.

Lennon had signed an autograph for Chapman on a copy of his recently released album, Double Fantasy, earlier that day.

State officials have yet to make transcripts of his latest parole board interview available, but he has repeatedly expressed remorse in earlier parole hearings.

Chapman called his actions "despicable" during his hearing in 2020, and said he would have "no complaint whatsoever" if they chose to leave him in prison for the rest of his life.

“I assassinated him … because he was very, very, very famous and that’s the only reason and I was very, very, very, very much seeking self-glory. Very selfish,” Chapman said then.

He is serving a sentence of between 20 years and life at Green Haven Correctional Facility, north of New York City, state corrections records show.

He is next due to appear before the parole board in February 2024.