Mark David Chapman writes letters to the New York City police officer who arrested him . He repeatedly tells the officer to read the book , I 'm 66 years old , and ` ` The Catcher in the Rye '' Chapman says that ` ` could -- and did -- have served the same purpose '' as John Lennon . He killed Lennon in 1980 and is serving a sentence of 20 years to life in prison .
Mark David Chapman writes 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 that ` ` could -- and did -- have served the same purpose '' as John Lennon . He killed Lennon in 1980 and is serving a sentence of 20 years to life in prison .