BOSTON (AP) – Victims of one of Mark Wahlberg’s racially motivated attacks as a teenage delinquent in segregated 1980s Boston are divided over whether the actor should get the pardon he’s seeking.
Kristyn Atwood was among a group of black schoolchildren hit by rocks hurled by Wahlberg and his white friends in 1986. She says Wahlberg shouldn’t be pardoned for a separate attack two years later on a pair of Asian men.
The teacher who led the field trip has a different view. Mary Belmonte says Wahlberg should be considered for a pardon if he apologizes to his victims.
Wahlberg says he was hooked on drugs and alcohol and associated with the wrong crowd at the time. He points to his successful acting career, restaurant ventures and philanthropic work as evidence he’s turned his life around.