• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
Lawyer fell out of skyscraper window to his death while trying to prove it was unbreakable

Home> News

Updated 10:51 22 Sep 2024 GMT+1Published 10:50 22 Sep 2024 GMT+1

Lawyer fell out of skyscraper window to his death while trying to prove it was unbreakable

Garry Hoy had just been excited to show off the strength of his office building

Emily Brown

Emily Brown

A lawyer who was determined to prove that a 24th-storey window was unbreakable tragically lost his life after falling out of it.

At 38 years old, Garry Hoy had made a name for himself as a well-respected lawyer at the Toronto law firm, Holden Day Wilson.

After obtaining a degree in engineering Hoy began to specialize in building safety and compliance, and he found particular interest in the subject of modern building techniques, and exactly how robust they were.

Hoy was enamored with the integrity of the windows (Getty Stock Photo)
Hoy was enamored with the integrity of the windows (Getty Stock Photo)

Advert

By July 1993, Hoy had become particularly fascinated with the windows on the 24th floor of his office building - particularly the strength of the windows looking out over the city.

The lawyer was so enamoured with the windows that he began to throw himself at the glass to prove just how strong they were, and for a while the windows were able to support his point.

However, on July 9, 1993, that support eventually gave way.

The incident took place as Hoy's firm threw a welcome party in their conference room for their new intake of interns for the summer.

Advert

With a room full of people, Hoy took his chance to show off the sturdiness of the windows and, as he'd done countless times before, he threw his full weight against the glass to demonstrate its unbreakable structural design and safety.

The first time he performed the trick, everything went as planned. But the second time, he didn't bounce back like he had before.

The window popped straight out of the frame (Getty Stock Photo)
The window popped straight out of the frame (Getty Stock Photo)

Instead, to the horror of the interns and other onlookers from the firm, the pane popped out of the frame, and Hoy went along with it.

Advert

The lawyer fell 24 floors, and tragically died as he hit the pavement below.

Speaking about the incident to the Toronto Star later, a structural engineer said: “I don’t know of any building code in the world that would allow a 160-pound man to run up against a glass window and withstand it."

Hoy's death was classified as 'accidental auto-defenestration' - which is the act of causing yourself to fall out of a window.

The lawyer was remembered by his peers as one of the 'one of the best and brightest' at the firm, and that point was backed by the fact that Hoy wasn't actually wrong about the windows at the firm.

Advert

The thing is, the glass didn't actually break upon impact - it was actually the frame that gave way and ultimately led to Hoy's untimely death.

Featured Image Credit: Findagrave/Public Domain/George Pachantouris/Getty Images

Topics: News, Weird

Emily Brown
Emily Brown

Emily Brown is UNILAD Editorial Lead at LADbible Group. She first began delivering news when she was just 11 years old - with a paper route - before graduating with a BA Hons in English Language in the Media from Lancaster University. Emily joined UNILAD in 2018 to cover breaking news, trending stories and longer form features. She went on to become Community Desk Lead, commissioning and writing human interest stories from across the globe, before moving to the role of Editorial Lead. Emily now works alongside the UNILAD Editor to ensure the page delivers accurate, interesting and high quality content.

Advert

Advert

Advert

  • Simulation shows what went wrong as lawyer fell to his death out of skyscraper window trying to prove it was unbreakable
  • Shocking moment nuclear chemist 'ate uranium' to prove it was harmless
  • Flat Earther reveals the one thing that made him realize he's 'wrong' while trying to prove the Earth isn’t round
  • What happens if you eat uranium after nuclear chemist 'ate' it to prove it was harmless

Choose your content:

14 mins ago
an hour ago
2 hours ago
  • David Livingston/Getty Images
    14 mins ago

    Anthony Hopkins reveals why his wife thinks he’s autistic and reason he doesn’t want to get tested

    The Silence of the Lambs star has revealed he has some 'obsessions'

    Celebrity
  • Getty Stock Image
    an hour ago

    Experts issue terrifying warning about side effects that come from using AI chatbots too often

    This will likely send chills down the spine of those who constantly ask 'grok is this true...'

    News
  • LauriPatterson/Getty Images
    an hour ago

    Six people dead after eating popular ready-meal pasta sold at US supermarkets

    A listeria outbreak has been identified

    News
  • CBS/60Minutes
    2 hours ago

    People shocked by Trump’s ‘delusional’ response when asked about NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani

    With the NYC Mayoral election now just days away, Donald Trump baffled voters with his comments when quizzed about candidate Zohran Mamdani

    News