Wahlberg seeking pardon for teen assaults

Actor Mark Wahlberg is asking a US state for a pardon for attacks he committed in 1988 when he was a troubled teenager.

Wahlberg, 43, says he has dedicated himself to becoming a better person in his adult years so he can be a role model to his children and others.

The former rapper known as Marky Mark, now the star of movies including The Departed and The Gambler, has filed a pardon application with Massachusetts over the assaults.

In 1988, when Wahlberg was 16, he struck a man on the head with a wooden stick while trying to steal two cases of alcohol in front of a convenience store near his family’s home in the Dorchester section of Boston, the application says.

He punched another man in the face while trying to avoid police.

Wahlberg says in the application that he was high on marijuana and other drugs at the time and police caught him with a small amount of pot.

He also apologised for his actions.

The actor ended up being convicted as an adult of assault and other charges, and was sentenced to three months in jail.

He said he was released after serving about 45 days.