"Ted" star Mark Wahlberg is currently seeking pardon for a case against him that happened 26 years ago.
The 43-year old Hollywood A-lister filed a petition at the Massachusetts Board of Pardons to have his 1988 criminal case eradicated from his record. In a report by Gawker.com, Wahlberg detailed the story of how he tried to rob a man along Dorchester Avenue on the night of April 8th, 1988. He tried doing so by hitting the man over the head with a wooden stick, while punching another as he tried to fend off the responding police officers.
Wahlberg was 16 years of age when the incident happened, but he was tried as a full-grown adult at the Dorchester District Court. Because of the incident, he was convicted with assault after being charged with attempted murder (among other charges). As a result, he was made to serve 45 days in prison.
Fast forward to 2014, where Wahlberg admitted that this particular run-in with the law changed his life. In his pardon application, the actor noted that he was "deeply sorry" for what had happened and the damages that it has caused on the other party.
"Since that time, I have dedicated myself to becoming a better person and citizen so that I can be a role model to my children and others," he stated.
Wahlberg also admitted that during the time of the incident, he was under the influence of alcohol and drugs, and that at the time of his arrest, he had "a small amount" of marijuana in his pocket.
The actor has since kept himself out of trouble and has done a number of charity works over the years. After establishing the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation and being involved with the Dorchester Boys and Girls Club, he is helped with the renovation of the Boston-area Parish Gym.
And in line with the writing of his pardon, Wahlberg notes that he is not doing it to make people forget about his unappealing past, but rather to be a role model for troubled ones.
"I have not engaged in philanthropic efforts in order to make people forget about my past," he adds. "To the contrary, I want people to remember my past so that I can serve as an example of how lives can be turned around and how people can be redeemed."
