Editing Judge Mathis (section)

===Coming-of-age journey fused with court show===
As a [[Juvenile delinquency|child and teenage delinquent]], Mathis found himself embroiled in frequent legal woes. He was a member of a street [[gang]] in Detroit, and he was arrested and sentenced to jail for illegally carrying a firearm when he was 17 years old.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2014/07/greg-mathis-judge-mathis-gang-gun-arrest-detroit/|title = Gun-Toting Judge Greg Mathis Was Arrested as a Teenager|date = 31 July 2014}}</ref>

Mathis was brought up in one of the worst housing projects in Detroit while raised by a single mother.<ref>[http://showbizspy.com/article/gun-toting-judge-greg-mathis-was-arrested-as-a-teenager-280966 Gun-Toting Judge Greg Mathis Was Arrested As A Teenager – Showbiz Spy<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808042415/http://showbizspy.com/article/gun-toting-judge-greg-mathis-was-arrested-as-a-teenager-280966 |date=8 August 2014 }}</ref><ref name="MadameNoire"/> During his youth, he was involved with gangs (most notably the [[Errol Flynns]] gang), [[dropping out|dropped out]] of school and spent time [[prison|behind bars]]. Growing up as a gang member and [[heroin]] dealer in the [[ghetto#African American ghettos|mean streets]] of Detroit, Michigan, Mathis had done plenty of time in [[Youth detention center|juvenile detention centers]] before age 17. All this changed when a judge gave him an [[ultimatum]]—either get a [[G.E.D.]] or go to jail. At the same time, Mathis found out his mother was dying of [[cancer]]. Rushing to her side, he promised her he'd turn his life around, which he did: he attended college, attended law school, earned a [[Juris Doctor]] degree, and passed the [[bar examination|bar]].<ref name="judgemathistv.warnerbros.com"/><ref name="MadameNoire"/><ref name="Variety"/>

Mathis had frequently used his courtroom series to highlight his troubled-youth-turned-success story as a way of motivating and inspiring his audience (especially the youth audience) that there's no adversity that they can't pick themselves up from. It was from his background that Mathis derived much of his arbitration formula and television show theme. For example, the court show's [[title sequence]] music video throughout the early seasons of the program consisted of a brief dedication to Mathis's life story, Mathis narrating with the lines: "Where I grew up, life was rough; we had to make do. And I was arrested several times as a juvenile delinquent. My mom told me she was about to die. I made my commitment that I would change my life. I bring a sense of tough life and compassion to the courtroom." Mathis later shared that he took the job as television arbitrator on the condition that his life story was shared as part of the opening for each episode.<ref name="Variety"/>

In the same likeness of his experience, Mathis took a distinct admiration for litigants who had seen the error of their troubled ways and had made efforts to improve and better their lives.<ref name="books.google.com">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RXQNIs12SzQC&pg=PA20 |title=Encyclopedia of Television Law Shows: Factual and Fictional Series about ... |date= 21 October 2009|isbn=9780786454525 |access-date=9 September 2013|last1=Erickson |first1=Hal |publisher=McFarland }}</ref> Mathis also made efforts to promote treatment and programs for individuals struggling with drug and alcohol addictions.<ref name="ChicagoTribune"/>