Murder of John Lennon

On the evening of 8 December 1980, English musician John Lennon, formerly of the Beatles, was shot and fatally wounded in the archway of The Dakota, his residence in New York City. His killer was Mark David Chapman, an American Beatles fan who had travelled from Hawaii. Chapman said he was angered by Lennon's lifestyle and public statements, especially his much-publicised remark about the Beatles being "more popular than Jesus" and the lyrics of his later songs "God" and "Imagine". Chapman also said he was inspired by the fictional character Holden Caulfield from J. D. Salinger's novel The Catcher in the Rye.

Chapman planned the killing over several months and waited for Lennon at the Dakota on the morning of 8 December. During the evening he met Lennon, who signed his copy of the album Double Fantasy. Lennon left with his wife, Yoko Ono, for a recording session at the Record Plant. Later that night, Lennon and Ono returned to the Dakota. As they walked towards the entrance of the building, Chapman fired five hollow-point bullets from a .38 special revolver, four of which hit Lennon in the back. Chapman remained at the scene reading The Catcher in the Rye until he was arrested. Lennon was rushed to Roosevelt Hospital in a police car where he was pronounced dead on arrival. He was 40 years old.

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