By A.J. Harris with Todd Wineburner
For the 3rd time in 2019, a trooper with the Illinois State Police has died in the line of duty on state highways. 36-year-old State Trooper Gerald Ellis was westbound on Interstate 94 in a suburban area north of Chicago when a car traveling the wrong direction hit the trooper’s car head on. Trooper Ellis died of his injuries at about 4 a.m. Saturday. The accident marks the 16th time this year that a state trooper has been struck by a vehicle. It’s the 3rd fatal incident as both Ellis and the driver of the other vehicle were killed in the collision. The incident remains under investigation so the name of the other driver has not been released. Ellis leaves behind a wife and two young daughters.
