I have a good friend (really, a friend...) who is applying to the state for the restoration of his civil rights.

He has asked me to be a reference for him, which I'm more than happy to do.  I guess he made some mistakes when he was younger (didn't we all ?) but for the last two years that I've known him, he has been one of those guys that you kinda admire for "finding the right path".

The first part of the form is easy.. who are you, how long have you know him, etc.

Then they ask for comments.  Hmmmmm.  What is "standard" in this type of thing. A page ? a paragraph?  

What do I say ?  Is there a "template" for this kind of thing?

Any help  would be greatly appreciated.

-J

You say you admire him for finding the right path. Just take a couple of paragraphs and explain that. What character traits do you admire? What actions have you seen that show you he is on the right path? Has he joined a church, done volunteer work? Things like that.

Hope I can help a little, I 've been reading a great deal about letter writing while trying to figure out what to say in a personal statement for lawschool and the main themes are:
Reason for writing
Brevity
Clarity
I'd say no more than a page because people loose interest when they know they have to turn a page for more reading whereas one page makes them feel like "allright, one more page to go."

MissedAgain, good for you for helping-out a friend like that.  I'd just like to say that I agree with Pompey on brevity.  I would even go further to state that I believe a paragraph is probably all they expect and/or would want to read.  From the way you made the form sound, it sounds like the comments section is not the central element on the form so it might not justify an entire extra page.  Also, if you make it sound like you need to do "a lot of explaining," then that's bad.  They're not simply going to believe you because you use a lot of words.

I guess you have to ask yourself, what are they looking for?  A few suggested things, if applicable (some of these are repeats of what was suggested above): how long have you known him, how often do you see him, does he have a "good" family, ever seen him break the law, ever seen how he treats authority, does he regularly go to church, has he had the same job for a while, does he do any volunteer work, does he have "loving" children, mention he doesn't do drugs, doesn't get drunk, never seen him lose his temper, why he wants his rights restored (example, so he can inherit his grandfathers prized shotgun or hunt), keeps-up with current events so he has a strong desire to vote, participates in his children's activities (e.g. helps coach a soccer team).

If you're at a complete loss, you can contact the ACLU in your state.  Don't laugh, they recently helped a friend of mine and his references with the restoration of his rights.  You don't have to tell them it's so that he can own firearms.z

All,

Thanks for the help.  I view this an a very important thing, and I don't want to do more harm than good !

Thanks to your "refresher course" it's all coming back to me now!  Introduction, Body, Conclusion(or summary).

I think you're correct about the one to two paragraphs - shouldn't be too hard.

Thanks again...

-J