Greg Mathis

Greg Mathis
Mathis with his wife Linda in December 2010
Retired Judge 36th District Court of the State of Michigan
In office 1995–1998
Personal details
Born	Gregory Ellis Mathis[1] (1960-04-05) April 5, 1960 Detroit, Michigan
Occupation	Judge, writer

Gregory Ellis "Greg" Mathis (born April 5, 1960) is a retired Michigan 36th District Court judge and syndicated television show arbiter on the reality court show Judge Mathis. It is seen five days a week in most television markets in North America. A spiritually inspired play, Been there, Done that, based on his life toured twenty-two cities in the U.S. in 2002. In addition, Inner City Miracle, a memoir was published by Ballatine Books.

Early life

Mathis was born in Detroit, Michigan, was the fourth of four boys born to Charles Mathis, a Detroit native, and his wife Alice née Lee Mathis, a devoted Seventh-day Adventist, nurse's aide, and housekeeper. Mathis was raised by Alice and her second husband, a local defense attorney in Detroit during the turbulent 1960s and 1970s.

Mathis' real father was estranged from him, but associated closely with the Errol Flynns, a past notorious Detroit street gang, that Mathis would eventually join while a teenager. In the 1970s, he was arrested numerous times. While he was incarcerated in Wayne County Jail, as a seventeen-year-old juvenile, his mother visited him and broke the news that she was diagnosed with colon cancer. Mathis was offered early probation because of his mother's illness.

Once out of jail, Mathis began working at McDonald's, a job he had to keep in order to maintain his release on probation. A close family friend helped Mathis get admitted to Eastern Michigan University, and he discovered a new interest in politics and public administration. He became a campus activist and worked for the Democratic Party, organizing several demonstrations against South African Apartheid policies. He graduated with a B.S. Public Administration from the Ypsilanti campus and began to seek employment in Detroit's City Hall. He also became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. Mathis met his eventual wife, Linda, a fellow EMU student, shortly after his mother's death. They would go on to have four children together, a daughter Jade, born May 1985, daughter Camara, born October 1987, son Greg Jr. born January 1989 and son Amir, born July 1990.^[2]

Election to District Court

Mathis failed the Michigan bar exam once, and had been denied a license to practice law for several years after graduating from law school because of his criminal past. He graduated from the University of Detroit Mercy in 1987. In 1995, he was elected a district court judge for Michigan's 36th District, making him the youngest person in the state to hold the post. During the five years he was on the bench, he was rated in the top five of all judges in the 36th District; there are about thirty judges each year.^{[citation needed]}

Political career

Mathis began his political career as an unpaid intern, and then became an assistant to Clyde Cleveland, a city council member. It was at this time Mathis took the LSAT and applied to law schools; he was conditionally admitted to the University of Detroit School of Law, which was located in downtown Detroit, walking distance from city hall. He passed a summer course and was officially admitted to the night program which took four years to complete.

Mathis was appointed head of Jesse Jackson's Presidential campaign in the state of Michigan in 1988. Mathis later became head of Mayor Coleman Young's re-election campaign and after the victory was appointed to run the city's east side city hall.

Mathis has continued to be involved in politics after rising to national entertainment prominence through his television show. Urban politics and African-American movements have been his focus. He has been a guest speaker for black trade union conferences, such as the A. Phillip Randolph Institute’s National Educational Conference on Social Justice and he was an on stage guest during the Nation of Islam’s Savior Day conference in Detroit’s Ford Field in 2007.^[3]

Mathis asked for the resignation of Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick after the Wayne County Prosecutor indicted Kilpatrick and his former top aide, Christine Beatty, on perjury, conspiracy, obstruction of justice and misconduct in office charges. Mathis spoke out after he was falsely named in an Associated Press wire story to have co-founded a legal defense fund for Kilpatrick.^[4] The statement released by Greg Mathis stated: "I was contacted Wednesday afternoon by Mayor Kilpatrick. He asked if I could serve on his legal defense committee. I informed him, I support due process, but I could not support him. This is the same type of deceit that has plunged our city into a deep crisis. Not only do I not support him, but I recommend he resign so the city can heal and move forward."

On June 4, 2011 Motor City drivers lined up for blocks for free gas Friday, courtesy of a grateful Greg Mathis. Mathis offered up to $92 worth of free gasoline apiece to the first 92 drivers to show up at a northwest Detroit Mobil station. He told the Detroit Free Press it was a gift to the people who elected him to District Court despite his youthful criminal record. "LA didn't elect me judge," he said. "Chicago didn't elect me judge. Detroiters took a chance on me. It's just the right thing to do. And when you're blessed, you have to look out for the rest." The giveaway took place near the Mathis Community Center, which he funds. Its activities include self-improvement classes, food and clothing assistance, and training for ex-convicts. "No matter what international fame he's achieved, he's still a hometown guy," said WMXD-FM's Frankie Darcell, who announced the location on the air. "Everybody's happy. I'm happy," said gas station owner Mike Safiedine. "The people need it, especially (because) the price is very high."

Authored Book

In September 2008, Mathis wrote a novel called Street Judge, based on the life of a judge who solves murders. It was co-written by Zane, a well-known erotic series writer of Zane's Sex Chronicles. Mathis also wrote a book entitled Of Being a Judge to Criminals and Such.

Video game

A self-confessed "major gamer", Mathis is currently working on a video game entitled Mathis: Detroit Street Judge with filmmaker Matty Rich. The game will focus on a newly released ex-convict working to find a way out of a life of crime, similar to Mathis' own experiences.^[5]

Bibliography

• Mathis, Greg and Blair S. Walker. Inner City Miracle, Ballatine: New York, 2002.
• Mathis, Greg. "Black men must fight back against obstacles. (For Brothers Only). Ebony (magazine). February 1, 2007. vol: 62:4 p. 38

References

External links

• Judge Mathis Empowerment Network web site
• Judge Mathis television web site