Reply #10: He was a schizophrenic

[noonwitch]

Chapman thought he was Lennon sometimes, and sometimes he thought God wanted him to kill Lennon. He had been involved in christian groups in his younger years that had gone overboard on the anti-Beatles thing after the "We're more popular than God" quote.

A local radio DJ called the prison Chapman is at one time and talked to one of the guards. The DJ was asking the guard if he could just accidentally shoot Chapman. The guard said that Chapman is not a problem inmate, as long as he takes his meds, and that he was one of the easier inmates to manage there.

I don't think he should ever get out, but I do hope they someday discover a cause and a side-effect free treatment for schizophrenia. It's a sad condition.