Mark Wahlberg

Mark Wahlberg

Mark Wahlberg is seeking a pardon after being convicted of assault in 1988.

The 43-year-old actor - who served 45 days in jail after originally being sentenced to two years behind bars for blinding a man in one eye with a wooden stick after attempting to steal two cases of alcohol outside a convenience store in Boston - reportedly filed an application with the Massachusetts Board of Pardons last week, asking to have his conviction erased from the record because he is "not the same person."

In documents filed on November 26, the 'Ted' star, who has four children, Ella, 11, Michael, eight, Brendan, six, and Grace, four, with wife Rhea Durham, wrote: "I am deeply sorry for the actions that I took on the night of April 8, 1988, as well as for any lasting damage that I may have caused the victims.

"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."

Mark also listed several examples of his good deeds since the attack, including his work with the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation, according to the New England Cable News.

But he added: "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.

"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 a formal recognition that someone like me can receive official public redemption if he devotes himself to personal improvement and a life of good works."