Mark Wahlberg seeks pardon for 1988 assault charge

Actor Mark Wahlberg is hoping to have a 1988 assault charge expunged from his record, insisting he is "not the same person" he was when he was a troubled teen.

The Transformers: Age of Extinction star was 16 years old when he was charged with assaulting a man outside a convenience store in his hometown of Dorchester, Massachusetts.

According to local news station NECN, Wahlberg was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time and hit the man over the head with a wooden stick before punching the victim as he attempted to escape from police. He was tried as an adult and served three months in jail.

Wahlberg, 43, filed a petition with the Massachusetts advisory board of pardons last week (26Nov14) in hopes of getting a pardon.

In the petition, he states that he has dedicated a lot of his adult life to giving back to several charitable organizations, including his own, the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation.

He writes, "I have not engaged in philanthropic efforts in order to make people forget about my past. 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."

Wahlberg adds that the pardon would validate the fact that anyone can turn their life around if they dedicate themselves to improving their lives and the lives of others.

He adds, "Receiving a pardon would be a formal recognition that I am not the same person that I was on the night of April 8, 1988. It would be formal recognition that someone like me can receive official public redemption if he devotes himself to personal improvement and a life of good works."

According to the Boston Herald newspaper, the Massachusetts advisory board is currently reviewing more than 70 applications for pardons, and have yet to vote on Wahlberg's petition.