Chapman did not try to get away, and was reading a book, "The Catcher in the Rye", when police came to the scene. They arrested Chapman, who later pled guilty to Lennon's murder, telling the court God had told him to do so. He was sentenced to twenty-five years to life in prison in 1981. He later wrote to Yoko Ono, trying to apologize to her and explain his actions, but she did not answer. In 1985, actor Mark Lindsay Chapman lost the chance to portray Lennon in a movie about his life with Ono, because his name was similar to that of Lennon's killer.