Superintendant Gary Ellis has had his share of sleepless nights. In 2003, he headed up Toronto Police Service’s homicide division. It was a tough year. His first murder case was 10-year-old Holly Jones, whose dismembered body was found in Toronto’s harbour. His last assignment was Cecilia Zhang, the girl abducted in the middle of the night from her home in Scarborough, Ontario, and brutally murdered. Gary and his team of investigators work tirelessly to find the perpetrators of these horrible crimes, reassure an anxious public and deal with a barrage of media questions.

“There is an incredible amount of stress,” notes Gary. “Failure is not an option. When a child is found dead there is huge pressure to find whoever is responsible. It wears on you as an individual, and it wears on the city. Everyone is looking to you to make it right.”
Gary’s success as a police officer has not come easily. He grew up in one of Toronto’s poorest neighbourhoods in a broken home with an alcoholic father. “It was a tough upbringing. Our family was assisted by The Salvation Army and we lived in public housing. Of the people I grew up with, over 23 of them are dead—by murder, drug overdose, misadventure or suicide.”

Fortunately, Gary also had positive influences in his life. During one family crisis, he stayed with his grandfather who took him to church. “When I was eight, I got down on my knees and asked Jesus into my life. My grandfather explained that he wasn’t always going to be there for me, but that I could always talk to God. That really stuck with me.”

An avid athlete, Gary participated in track and field and football. After graduating from high school, he spent two years in college before joining the Toronto Police Service in 1977 at age 19. “My goal was to help people. I wanted to make a difference. I had seen too many lives go off track. Where I came from, there were clear choices—good versus evil. I wanted to do good.”

By 1980, Gary was a constable, walking the beat on Yonge Street in downtown Toronto. “It was called ‘sin strip’ because of all the prostitution, violence and drugs,” he recalls. Gary had a passion for helping young people get off the street. He received a special commendation for helping a young runaway from B.C. who had been forced into a life of prostitution. “I convinced her to get off the streets, called her father and bought her a plane ticket home.”

Gary recalls walking into a few dangerous situations in his early days, including some confrontations with unruly, intoxicated people. Although he’s been stabbed twice, he says: “Fear is not something I feel on the job. I think it’s more of a sense of responsibility, a burden for me. I take my work seriously; it’s a very important job.”

In the late 1980s, Gary’s career took an unexpected twist. “I used to have a fear of speaking in front of people,” confesses Gary. “Whenever I was asked a question by a superior, my stomach would turn. After my son, Tyler, was born, my wife was diagnosed with health problems. I switched to a more regular routine and ended up teaching at the police college.” Gary quickly learned new leadership skills, including public speaking, and his career began to take off. He earned his master’s degree in leadership and has completed his doctorate at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.

From 1998-2001, he served as second in command at Toronto’s 42 Division before moving to a special enforcement unit. He then spent a year working in Toronto’s sex crimes unit and, in 2003, was the first Canadian officer to be seconded to train officers at the FBI national academy in Quantico, West Virginia, U.S.A.

“Part of the pressure of being a police officer,” says Gary, “is that a lot is expected of you. You have a role to play. It’s much like being a Christian. If someone knows you’re a Christian, they expect certain behaviour. You always have to be prepared. There is a proverb that says a reputation of 1,000 years can be destroyed in one hour. A lot of people look to me as an example. The fear of letting people down is real.”

Gary’s belief in Christ has sustained him through some tough times. “I could never be a police officer without my faith. It sets the foundation for my character, drives my conversations and influences my interactions with people. I feel the security of knowing there is a bigger picture.

“In a diverse city like Toronto it’s very difficult to express your faith as a public figure. As a police officer you have a responsibility to everyone. But my Christian faith is important, and I believe strongly in it.”

Gary often turns to the Bible for strength. “One verse that always pops into my head is from Psalm 23: ‘The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want.’ It may seem simple, but it’s a reminder to me that no matter what happens, God’s in control.”

Gary is currently responsible for Toronto Police Services 42 Division.