News article:

Actor Mark Wahlberg is asking the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to pardon him for crimes he committed more than 25 years ago. (Published Thursday, Dec. 4, 2014)

 Mark Wahlberg is asking Massachusetts to wipe out his decades-out assault conviction, saying that ever since he served time for a 1988 attack that left another man blind in one eye, he has tried to become a "better person and citizen."

 The movie superstar, now 43, has filed an application with the Massachusetts Board of Pardons, hoping to get his criminal record erased.

 "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," Wahlberg wrote in his pardon application. "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."

 Wahlberg says in the application, filed Nov. 26, that on April 8, 1988, he tried to steal two cases of alcohol from a man outside a convenience store on Dorchester Avenue, hitting him over the head with a stick and then punching another man in the face as he fled from police.

 Though only 16, he was tried as an adult in Dorchester District Court, in the neighborhood where he grew up the youngest of nine children. He was convicted of assault after being charged with attempted murder and other charges, and he served 45 days in prison.

 Video Paul Walker Memorabilia Stolen

 In his pardon application, Wahlberg, best known for his roles in movies like "The Fighter" and "The Departed," goes on to say that he has spoken "openly and publicly" about his actions on that night over the past 20-plus years.

 In his petition, he outlines the incidents that led to his arrest, saying that he attempted to steal two cases of alcohol from a man who was standing outside of a convenience store near his home around 9 p.m. He said he hit the man on the head with a wooden stick, and then ran down the block to evade police. While attempting to avoid police, he said he punched another man in the face.

 "I was detained by police a few minutes after that," Wahlberg wrote. "While I was detained, the police discovered that I had a small amount of marijuana in my back pocket. During the incident, I was under the influence of alcohol and narcotics."

 In making his case, Wahlberg cites his involvement with charities and good deeds he has done to rebuild his life, including the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation, the Dorchester Boys and Girls Club, the renovation of the Boston-area Parish Gym and the fact that he attends church nearly every day.

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

 Explaining his reasons for wanting a pardon, Wahlberg says he'd like to be able to get a concessionaire's license to help him with his restaurant businesses, and he'd like to be able to help law enforcement, working with at-risk kids.

 "The more complex answer is that 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," Wahlberg concluded. "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."

 "He has set an example he has this foundation which he's had for a long time," said Senior Vice President Wendy Pierce of Solomon McCown, a strategic consulting firm. "Maybe he is trying to expand his foundation, maybe he wants to build a youth center, maybe he just really wants to show his kids that you can clear your name."

 It could take some time for Wahlberg to get a response from the state. The Board of Pardons needs to investigate the petition and decide if it warrants a public hearing before it is recommended to the governor who, by that time, will be not Deval Patrick, but Charlie Baker.

 If the governor approves, it still needs to get the approval of the governor's council. ||||| Most women would be happy to date Harry Styles, but not Rhea Durham. RadarOnline.com has learned that Mark Wahlberg’s wife is happy he’s getting ready to go bald for cancer charity One Mission — because she thinks he looks like “an old Harry” Styles!

 Wahlberg revealed the funny fact during a promo video for the upcoming Kid’s Cancer Buzz-Off at Gilette Stadium on June 7, taped with One Mission co-founders Ari and Ashley Haseotes.

 According to the rapper turned movie star, he’s daring to go bare once he finishes filming Ted 2, Deepwater Horizon, and Daddy’s Home, as part of The One Mission Buzz Off For Kids With Cancer.

 “We’re challenging every single person out there to buzz their hair,” he said in the clip.

 “My wife will actually be happy because she says I look like an old Harry [Styles] from One Direction,” Wahlberg, 43, continued.

 “I’m challenging every other celebrity sports star in the world” to pitch in too, he said.

 The Buzz For Kids campaign will benefit One Mission programs to help kids with cancer at Boston Children’s Hospital, The Jimmy Fund at Dana-Farber, Children’s Health in Dallas, and The Family Reach Foundation. At Boston Children’s alone, One Mission funds more than 80% of the programs offered in The One Mission oncology Resource room, including yoga, arts & crafts, spa days, game nights, and more.

 Watch his challenge here and stay tuned @buzzforkids for the bald shot! ||||| Actor Mark Wahlberg has long said he regrets what he did to Thanh Lam in 1988, beating the Vietnamese man with a 5-foot stick while yelling slurs at him. Now, Wahlberg would like to erase the incident altogether.

 The onetime ruffian from Dorchester has applied to the Massachusetts Board of Pardons to have the violent assault conviction removed from his record. The request was first reported Thursday by NECN.

 At issue is a well-publicized incident that took place on the night of April 8, 1988, when Wahlberg, now one of Hollywood’s most successful actors and producers, was 16 and looking for trouble. According to police, the youngest of Alma Wahlberg’s nine children tried to steal two cases of beer from Lam outside a convenience store on Dorchester Avenue.

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 Wahlberg hit Lam over the head with a wooden stick and, according to police, called his victim a string of racial slurs. He was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and possession of a controlled substance, and served 45 days of a 90-day sentence at the Deer Island House of Correction.

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 “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,” Wahlberg states in the application filed with the Board of Pardons.

 Wahlberg also mentions the work of his charity, the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation, and his support of the Dorchester Boys and Girls Club and his habit of attending church almost every day.

 “I have not engaged in philanthropic efforts in order to make people forget about my past,” he states. “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.”

 He acknowledges that a pardon would be helpful as he (and his brothers) continue to grow their restaurant business. The family recently announced plans to open 27 more locations of their Wahlburgers chain.

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 “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,” Wahlberg says in the application. “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.”

 More coverage:

 • Document: Mark Wahlberg’s pardon petition

 • Wahlburgers cooks up ambitious expansion plan |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– Back in 1988, Mark Wahlberg was just a 16-year-old troublemaker, and after trying to steal two cases of beer from Thanh Lam outside a Massachusetts convenience store, he beat the man with a 5-foot stick and screamed racial slurs at him. The attack left Lam blind in one eye, NECN reports. Wahlberg was convicted of assault and served 45 days, and now, more than 26 years later, he'd like the conviction erased from his record, the Boston Globe reports. "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," Wahlberg wrote in his application to the state's Board of Pardons. "I have not engaged in philanthropic efforts in order to make people forget about my past," he continued, mentioning his own charity, as well as his support of the Dorchester Boys and Girls Clubs. "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 formal recognition that someone like me can receive official public redemption if he devotes himself to personal improvement and a life of good works." He does note that a pardon would also allow him to get a concessionaire's license, which would help in terms of his Wahlburgers restaurant chain. (Wahlberg's latest good deed: He'll go bald for a cancer charity.)


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 is on his daughter's team over herthis morning in L.A. But he seems to ignore an important fact -- cops claim she was impaired and that's why they busted her.The Senator points out thatblew under California's legal limit of .08. He also says she was not pulled over for drunk driving but rather expired tags.Kerry's rep says, "Senator Kerry supports his daughter and will have no further comment on a private matter."But here's the deal. The Senator didn't mention Alexandra flunked the field sobriety test and that's why cops arrested her. Also in California, you don't need a .08 to be driving under the influence. A sip of wine could do the trick if you can't handle it when you get behind the wheel.But law enforcement sources tell us it's unlikely prosecutors will file charges. ||||| John Kerry: My Daughter Was Not Legally Drunk

 or leave a comment of your own See what other readers have to say about this story –

 Sen. John Kerry's daughter Alexandra, who was arrested and booked for a possible DUI, was released after a breathalyzer test fell under the legal limit for intoxication, according to the senator's spokesman.Alexandra Kerry, 36, who works as a film director/producer, was arrested in Los Angeles early Thursday morning and released at 5:25 a.m. after posting $5,000 bail, police records show."Alexandra Kerry was pulled over for an expired registration and was released after the results of a breathalyzer test at the police station were under the legal limit," says Jodi Seth, spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Democrat. "Senator Kerry supports his daughter and will have no further comment on a private matter."Police Sgt. Enrique Mendoza tells PEOPLE that Alexandra Kerry was stopped by officers "for a DUI investigation" and brought to the Hollywood station, where "she identified herself as Sen. Kerry's daughter."A court date is set for Dec. 10. |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– John Kerry supports daughter Alexandra after her recent DUI arrest, he says in a statement, adding that she was originally pulled over for expired registration and was released after a breathalyzer test found she was under the legal limit. But a police officer tells People Alexandra was stopped “for a DUI investigation,” and TMZ points out that she also failed the field sobriety test. Her hearing is Dec. 10, but sources maintain she most likely won't be charged.


Here is a news article: It was a rare but certainly interesting case of theft, and the perpetrator has now been sentenced.

 An employee of the Royal Canadian Mint in Ottawa was found to have been stealing gold from the mint.

 In November of last year 35-year-old Leston Lawrence was found guilty of stealing 22 gold “pucks”.

 Original RCI story 2016

 His job at the time was to take small samples from batches of molten gold which would then be tested for purity. He sometimes worked alone and the process meant periods out of sight of the only security camera in the room.

 He managed to sell 17 of the pucks for a total of about $130,000. He was caught, not by the mint, but through an alert bank employee where he cashed the cheques.

 Lawrence creating gold puck

 Lawrence has now been sentenced to 30 months in jail, and pay a $190,000 fine, the estimated actual worth of the missing gold.

 Ontario Court Justice Peter Doody also said Lawrence must repay the fine within three years of his release, or be sent back to jail for another 30 months.

 Lawrence used the money to buy a house in Jamaica and a boat in Florida.

 Internal video of screening room as Lawrence sets off main detector

 The judge noted that the evidence was mostly circumstantial as no-one actually saw Lawrence taking the pucks and there was no video evidence although the pucks exactly fit the unique ladle used at the mint, and Vaseline and latex gloves were found in Lawrence’s locker at work. Four unsold pucks were also recovered from a safety deposit box.

 Records show Lawrence also set off the metal detector more often than any other employee, but that subsequent checks with a wand did not set off alarms.

 The Mint says it since improved its internal security measures.

 Additional information- sources ||||| The former Royal Canadian Mint employee who apparently used his rectum to smuggle 22 solid gold "pucks" out of the secure facility in Ottawa has been given a 30-month prison sentence and must pay a fine of $190,000.

 In November, 35-year-old Leston Lawrence was found guilty of stealing the 22 pucks from the mint on Sussex Drive, and of laundering 17 of them through Ottawa Gold Buyers (the cheque for an 18th puck never cleared because that puck was seized by police).

 Lawrence was also found guilty of possession of property obtained by crime, conveying gold out of the mint and breach of trust by a public official.

 Ontario Court Justice Peter Doody ruled Thursday that Lawrence would have to serve an additional 30 months if he doesn't pay the $190,000 fine within three years of being released from prison.

 The weight of the 17 laundered pucks ranged from 192 to 264 grams apiece and were sold for between $6,800 and $9,500 each in 2014 and 2015.

 Lawrence made $130,000 from the 17 pucks he sold, which he sent abroad to build a house in Jamaica and buy a boat in Florida, among other transactions. The full market value of the 17 pucks of gold is estimated to be about $190,000, according to a statement of restitution prepared by the mint in early January.

 It's estimated that if Lawrence had managed to sell all 22 pucks through Ottawa Gold Buyers, Lawrence would have made about $165,000 — an amount based on what he sold the 17 pucks for.

 Crown wanted 3 years, defence wanted 18 months

 During sentencing submissions last month, Crown attorney David Friesen said Lawrence should be sentenced to three years in prison, arguing that the offences took place over several months and were "not simply a one-off," and that Lawrence has not demonstrated remorse.

 The Crown was also seeking a $190,000 fine.

 Defence lawyer Gary Barnes, meanwhile, said his client should receive an 18-month jail sentence, arguing lax security measures made it easy for Lawrence to smuggle the gold and that he's already lost his job.

 Barnes also argued Lawrence should only have to pay back $130,000 — the amount he actually made selling the 17 pucks of gold — rather than the $190,000 the 17 laundered pucks are estimated to be worth.

 Defence lawyer Gary Barnes says the judge in the gold smuggling trial was meticulous. 1:27

 'Accepts that he has been convicted'

 Speaking to reporters outside court Thursday, Barnes called Doody's decision careful and meticulous, and said it was "difficult to quibble with what he had to say."

 Lawrence is reacting "very well" to the media interest in the case, Barnes said, and accepts the outcome of the trial.

 "We expected it all along. ... When no one showed up for the first week and we were sort of under the radar, that was very, very surprising," Barnes said.

 "He's sitting there looking at what the judge has done ... and he accepts that he has been convicted."

 Barnes also reiterated that the mint's security measures were too lax.

 Mint responds

 In an emailed statement, a mint spokesperson wrote Thursday that "several improvements" have been made to their security system, "including upgrades to our facility's security checkpoint and screening process; upgrades to our camera system to high definition which provides real-time monitoring capability in all areas of the mint; and working closely with CATSA [Canadian Air Transport Security Authority] to establish more robust scanning training of our employees.

 "The mint is one of the most secure facilities in Canada and we are confident that we have the right security measures in place to effectively operate our business," the statement reads. |||||
A summary of this is?

– A Canadian man who smuggled $145,000 in gold out of the country's mint is on his way to prison—and will probably be searched extremely thoroughly on the way in. Leston Lawrence, found guilty in November of smuggling 22 gold "pucks" out of the Royal Canadian Mint in his rectum, has been sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to pay his former employers the full market value of the stolen gold, the CBC reports. Ontario Judge Peter Doody ruled that if the 35-year-old can't come up with the money within three years of getting out of prison, he'll have to go back behind bars for another 30 months. Lawrence—who set off metal detectors at work many times but always passed searches with a handheld wand—was convicted of conveying gold out of the mint, breach of trust by a public official, and possession of property obtained by crime, reports the BBC. Prosecutors said he used the $100,000 or so he made from selling the gold to Ottawa Gold Buyers to buy a house in Jamaica and a boat in Florida. Investigators, first alerted by a suspicious bank teller, found Vaseline and rubber gloves in Lawrence's work locker. In his safe deposit box at a bank, they discovered four unsold gold pucks, which had about the same diameter as a golf ball and matched the size of the ladle Lawrence used to test gold at the mint, Radio Canada International reports. (You'll never guess how this teen tried to smuggle a gun.)


Article:

Wait! Does Mindy Kaling know something we don't know? As the Internet went crazy on Wednesday, May 6 after news that her show, The Mindy Project, was to be axed from the Fox Network after just three seasons, the 35-year-old comedienne was looking happy as she admired the views in Montana.

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 Hours after the announcement was made, and fans had jumped online to express their devastation at the show's cancellation, Kaling shared a video with her followers which was both cryptic, and more than a little hopeful!

 Posting the video onto her Instagram account, Kaling referred to the hoopla surrounding Fox's announcement with a typically tongue-in-cheek comment. "Hey guys, I'm in Montana, is anything happening in LA? #themindyproject," she wrote.

 PHOTOS: Tragic TV deaths

 Clearly, there was a lot happening in L.A., but judging by the video, she's not letting any of it get her down.

 Hey guys, I'm in Montana, is anything happening in LA? #themindyproject A video posted by Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) on May 6, 2015 at 8:25pm PDT

 The film clip shows a panoramic scan of the stunning Montana scenery at twilight, where Kaling is currently vacationing with three friends. At the end of the clip, the camera pans round so her face comes into view. The actress, writer and producer beams a huge smile at the lens, and then winks mischievously at fans.

 We're just hoping Kaling's cryptic message is a hint that all is not lost! Shortly after Fox's announcement, another report surfaced, this time from Variety, that Hulu was in talks to save the much-loved show.

 PHOTOS: Best TV couples of all time

 "Hulu is in talks with Universal TV to move the Fox comedy over to the streaming service for multiple seasons," the industry mag reported.

 Tell Us: What do you think Mindy's message means? ||||| These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. |||||
What is a summary?

– Fans of The Mindy Project were upset yesterday that Fox is canceling Mindy Kaling's sitcom after three seasons, but could it be saved? Kaling posted a video to Instagram shortly after news broke, Us reports: "Hey guys, I'm in Montana, is anything happening in LA? #themindyproject," reads the caption; the video pans to show the scenery, then Kaling's face—and it ends with her winking. After she posted it, Variety ran a story claiming that the studio behind the show, Universal Television, is in talks to move the series over to Hulu for at least two more seasons, though neither Universal, nor Fox, nor Hulu would comment on that. (Click to read about the next book Kaling has coming out.)