The man who killed John Lennon outside his New York City apartment building told a parole board he was seeking fame and had “evil in my heart”.
Mark David Chapman made the comments in August to a board that denied him parole for a 12th time, citing his “selfish disregard for human life of global consequence”.
Chapman shot and killed Lennon on the night of December 8, 1980, as the singer and his wife Yoko Ono were returning to their Upper West Side apartment.
Chapman said he knew it was wrong to kill the former Beatle.
The decision to murder Lennon was “my big answer to everything. I wasn’t going to be a nobody, any more”, he said.
“I am not going to blame anything else or anybody else for bringing me there,” Chapman told the board.
John Lennon was born on October 9, 1940 in Liverpool. An 8-year-old Lennon is pictured here in his school uniform. All photos unless otherwise stated: Getty Images
Lennon standing outside Paul McCartney's Liverpool home in 1960 with fellow Beatles George Harrison and McCartney. Ringo Starr was not to join the band for another two years.
Lennon performs at the Cavern Club in Liverpool in 1961.
The Beatles holding a silver disc in 1963.
The Beatles on stage at the London Palladium, performing in front of 2, 000 screaming fans in 1963.
Lennon at the London Palladium in 1963.
The Beatles wave to the crowd while in the US for their first concerts in the country, in February 1964.
American television host Ed Sullivan smiles as he meets the famous band in 1964.
Lennon, McCartney and Starr enjoy a few moments away from adoring fans after police smuggled them out of the side door of their hotel for a visit to Central Park, New York City, in 1964.
Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali poses in the ring with The Beatles in 1964.
The Beatles perform at Shea Stadium, New York in August 1965.
The Beatles receive MBEs at Buckingham Palace in London in 1965.
The Beatles rehearse for 'Our World', the BBC's contribution to a two-hour live global television broadcast in 1967.
The Beatles and friends give an audience to the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1967.
Lennon and McCartney arriving in London in 1968. They were both carrying apples to promote their new company Apple Corps.
Yoko Ono and her husband Lennon, with his son Julian on his lap, pose with Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones, Cream guitarist Eric Clapton and Roger Daltrey of The Who, in London, 1968.
The Beatles performing their final live public concert on the rooftop of the Apple Organisation building in Savile Row, London, 1969.
Lennon and Ono pose on the steps of the Apple building in London in 1969.
Lennon and Ono in their bed in the Presidential Suite of the Hilton Hotel, Amsterdam, in 1969. The couple staged a 'bed-in for peace' for seven days.
Ono and Lennon after having their hair cut in 1970.
A crowd gathers outside the Dakota apartments in New York after Lennon was shot hours earlier in front of the building in December 1980.
Fans of John Lennon hold a vigil after he was shot outside his home in New York, 1980.
The Empire State Building in New York is illuminated light blue, to mark what would have been Lennon's 80th birthday. AP
Yoko Ono paid tribute to her 'angels' on Twitter on what would have been Lennon's 80th birthday.
“I knew what I was doing, and I knew it was evil, I knew it was wrong, but I wanted the fame so much that I was willing to give everything and take a human life.”
Chapman, 67, said: “This was evil in my heart. I wanted to be somebody and nothing was going to stop that.”
Chapman is serving a 20-years-to-life sentence at Green Haven Correctional Facility in New York’s Hudson Valley. He has repeatedly expressed remorse during his parole hearings over the years.
“I hurt a lot of people all over the place and if somebody wants to hate me, that’s OK, I get it,” he said at the August 31 hearing.
The transcript was released on Monday after a freedom of information request.
Mark Chapman’s next parole board appearance is scheduled for February 2024. AP
In denying him release, the board mentioned Chapman’s action has left “the world recovering from the void of which you created”.
Chapman’s next parole board appearance is scheduled for February 2024.
On the day he was killed, Lennon had earlier signed an autograph for Chapman on a copy of his recently released album, Double Fantasy.
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.
In June, John Hinckley Junior, who shot and wounded President Ronald Reagan in 1981, was freed from court oversight, officially concluding decades of supervision by legal and mental health professionals. Hinckley had been acquitted by reason of insanity.
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Romeo Akbar Walter
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THE BIO
Favourite car: Koenigsegg Agera RS or Renault Trezor concept car.
Favourite book:I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes or Red Notice by Bill Browder.
Biggest inspiration: My husband Nik. He really got me through a lot with his positivity.
Favourite holiday destination: Being at home in Australia, as I travel all over the world for work. It’s great to just hang out with my husband and family.
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What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
Scoreline
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened. He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia. Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”. Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
The bio
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Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
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Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
