Ellement grew up in South Buffalo, New York, and graduated from Northeastern University in 1981. Well-known news stories he has extensively covered include the so-called "Craigslist Killer", New England Patriot Nick Kaczur's drug use , abortion clinic killer John Salvi, Clark Rockefeller, the kidnapping and murder of Melissa Gosule, what became the national story of the arrest of Henry Louis Gates, and the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombings.