Garry Hoy great legal mind and tragic ending

On my visit to York Cemetery in Toronto, I discovered the grave of corporate lawyer, partner, and great legal mind, Garry Hoy, who fell to his death on July 9, 1993, from the 24th floor of his office building trying to demonstrate the strength of his office windows.

The 38-year-old lawyer with the law firm Holden Day Wilson (no longer practicing) reported for work at the Toronto-Dominion Bank Tower building in downtown Toronto and made his way to his offices on the 24th floor.

Hoy, a structural engineering buff, had attempted several times before to hurl himself into the glass to prove that the windows overlooking the city were secure and incredibly well engineered.

However, on the morning of July 9, in front of a group of prospective legal apprentices, Garry saw the perfect opportunity to demonstrate his ‘party trick.’ He body-slammed the glass in front of the law students, and it held firm. Emboldened, Hoy threw himself at it a second time. In a split second, the mood in the room turned from amusement to horror: instead of bouncing off as he had the first time, Hoy went straight through as the pane popped out of its frame. He plunged twenty-four stories and was killed instantly.

Days later, strucural engineer Bob Greer said “I don’t know of any building code in the world that would allow a 73 kg (160 lb) man to run up against a glass and withstand it.

Garry Hoy  died July 9, 1993. He was 38.

1954-1993