Lennon assassin receiving conjugal visits

ALBANY, N.Y., Aug. 11 (UPI) -- Mark David Chapman, the man convicted of killing Beatles great John Lennon, has been receiving conjugal visits at a New York prison, officials say.

Correctional Services Department spokesman Erik Kriss confirmed Chapman, who fatally shot the British music star Dec. 8, 1980, has been able to spend 44 hours straight with his wife Gloria as part of a "family reunion" program, the New York Daily News reported Monday.

The program at the Attica Correctional Facility in Albany, N.Y., allows inmates to spend time with loved ones inside special modular units on the prison grounds.

Kriss said the program is designed to "preserve and strengthen family ties that have been disrupted as a result of incarceration."

The Daily News noted Chapman has been up for parole multiple times since his incarceration more than 25 years ago, but Lennon's widow has repeatedly called for his continued detention.

"I am afraid it will bring back the nightmare, the chaos and confusion once again," said Yoko Ono, who was with her husband when he was killed, in a 2000 letter to prison authorities.