Mark David Chapman wrote letters to the New York City police officer who arrested him . Tell me about your children . He repeatedly tells the officer to read the book , `` The Catcher in the Rye '' Chapman says others `` could -- and would -- have served the same purpose '' as John Lennon . In a letter dated July 19, 1963, he writes that his arrest was an example of how ``the government is trying to control our thoughts by making us afraid to think for ourselves or speak out against
Mark David Chapman wrote letters to the New York City police officer who arrested him . He repeatedly tells the officer to read the book , `` The Catcher in the Rye '' Chapman says others `` could -- and would -- have served the same purpose '' as John Lennon . In a letter dated July 19, 1963, he writes that his arrest was an example of how ``the government is trying to control our thoughts by making us afraid to think for ourselves or speak out against