A couple stands in front of a portrait of John Lennon at a museum in Japan. The man who gunned him down, Mark Chapman, could be released from jail this week. Photo by AFP
Mark Chapman, the man who gunned down John Lennon in New York, could be released from jail this week. Chapman, now 49, was sentenced to 20 years to life after shooting Lennon five times in the back outside the singer's Manhattan apartment building on December 8, 1980. Having served 24 years, Chapman has a parole hearing scheduled for Tuesday or Wednesday, the third hearing for Chapman. Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, has strongly opposed Chapman paroling, argued that he continues to pose a risk to herself and her family.