Greg Ellis: The Respondent

A recent article in Spectator World, “I was Fathernapped,” authored by Greg Ellis, reads like a Hollywood fiction…maybe because it is?

“As the police began circling, my friend Patrick Fabian arrived, and I took immediate solace in the fact that someone else would assure the police of my benevolence. Patrick checked on the boys upstairs and reported to the officers that both (son 1) and (son 2) were fine. But his reassurance fell on deaf ears — the officers responded with barely a shrug.

My stomach tightened. In the kitchen, I discussed the situation with Patrick and, after a few minutes, returned to the front door, determined to reason with the police. But there would be no reason, no negotiation. To the contrary, at that moment a sergeant walked up the garden path to join his fellow officers, bringing the assembly of law enforcement crowding my front door to five officers in total.

The newly arrived sergeant took his turn interrogating me about (son 1) and (son 2)’s physical wellbeing, and my plaintiff response betrayed a mounting frustration.

‘Sergeant, I’ve made no threats to my sons. They are safe, playing upstairs, and there’s a witness who’s corroborated that fact. You have no warrant, so please leave my property. I would like to know who called and lied about me threatening them.’

The sergeant cleared his throat. ‘Sir, we received a call. You were reported to have said, “I’m sick of this shit, I’m gonna harm the children.”’ Ten short words — barely a sentence. And yet, strung together they formed a horrendous falsehood that was about to change my life forever.

It defied belief. Someone couldn’t seriously have called the police and told them I was a threat to my children. It has to be a big mistake, I tried to tell myself. And yet, beneath the shock, I sensed that someone had called the police and had lied about me. Not just any lie, but the worst, most carefully manufactured deceit.

The slowly developing interrogation continued, and, after a few hours of probing, the veneer of civility collapsed and the assembled force of officers broke the line and entered the house. They questioned me further, but that was a mere pretense. Before long, I was informed that a SMART (Systemwide Mental Assessment Response Team) from the DCFS (Department of Children and Family Services) was on their way.

Then I was handcuffed.

Somehow, I felt as if I was both wide awake and sleepwalking through this surreal moment. I stood in the living room of my California dream home that represented four decades of labor. My children were upstairs. Did they witness any of this?

My front door yawned at the manicured lawns, the bright lights of the interior spilling out past the handful of officers and onto the street where neighbors were doing a half-hearted job at hiding their morbid curiosity as they moved along the sidewalk at a snail’s pace.

Then the DCFS arrived and supplemented the existing police force, establishing a preposterously large crew to restore law and order to a situation lacking in neither. They evaluated me for approximately half an hour. I answered all their questions honestly — too honestly, it would turn out. Suffice to say that the right to remain silent is pointless unless you keep your mouth shut, and anything you say will be misquoted, then used against you.

The DCFS agents, having interrogated me, left the room to compare notes with the police. I awaited their verdict, still holding onto a sliver of hope that this would end peacefully with me bidding the cadre of officials a good evening.”

This is the reality Greg Ellis would like people to believe - according to Ellis, he’s a victim of a corrupt system, he’s had his life destroyed based on a “ten word lie” and now lost all contact with his children. While Greg and I will agree that the family court system is broken, my sense was that there was more to the story and sure enough, there is.

The picture painted by Greg, (the one he would like you to believe) is not what is shown in his family court case files (which are open to the public under his real name, Jonathan Rees) and are now widely circulating through the advocacy communities. Specifically, the declaration written by his friend, Patrick Fabian discredits Greg’s version of reality in the above-mentioned and quoted article.

The names of the innocent parties have been redacted to protect their identities so I feel comfortable sharing Mr. Ellis’ court documents with you (click here) and allowing you to formulate your own opinion. Mr. Ellis is gaining media attention with his Hollywood tale and has received support from Brad Pitt, Alec Baldwin and Johnny Depp along with father’s rights proponents and those in favor of shared parenting legislation (50/50).

I invite you to form your own opinion - I have formed mine.