Barbara Eileen and James Gordon conceived James Jr. shortly before arriving in Gotham City while they were still living in Chicago. Gordon quickly attracted the wrath of mobster Carmine Falcone and a hitman named Johnny Viti was sent to kidnap his infant son. James Jr. was thrown off a bridge and only rescued by the timely intervention of Batman. It has been speculated since then that damage from this fall might have been the cause of his psychopathic tendencies as an adult.
From a very early age, James Jr. showed signs of being different. He would kill animals and take them apart as a hobby. In one particularly disturbing incident, he was implicated in the disappearance of one of his sister's friends.
When James Jr. returned to Gotham after many years, he secretly began to following his father. Barbara warned Commissioner Gordon not to trust him, but James Jr. confronted his father in a diner, anyways. He explained that he has started to take medication for his psychopathic tendencies and was trying to turn his life around. James Jr. announced that hewais planning to get a job by helping the other mentally ill at Leslie Thompkins' clinic asking his father to set him up with a recommendation from Dick Grayson, who then took up the mantle of the Batman.
