| Synopsis |
Gang initiates are slashing women's ankles, even attempting to cut off body parts.
See the story here.
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Is it true?
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No. It is an urban legend, or rather, it is a story that combines elements of two well-traveled urban legends.
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| Why? |
- No instance of this crime has ever been reported.
- Ankle slasher urban legends have been circulating since the 1950s according to urban folklorist Jan Harold Brunvand.
- Killer in the back seat urban legends have been circulating just as long.
- Unless the gang initiates are supermodel skinny, it is not easy to crawl underneath a car, much less attack someone from under a car.
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| When? | The most recent example began circulating in November 1999. Other versions date back to the 1950s. |
| Comments |
The story incorporates elements of two well-known urban legends. Urban folklorist Jan Harold Brunvand categorizes them as:
- "The Slasher under the Car" Ankle-slashing men hide beneath cars/
- "The Killer in the Backseat" Would-be killer lurks in back, detected by motorist or gas-station attendant.
Brunvand notes that both stories have been around at least thirty years and the 'gang initiation' motivation of the slashers as occurring in 1992.
The alt.folklore.urban FAQ also describes the legends:
- Fb. Woman gets in her car at night; is followed on the way home; calls for help; husband accosts the guy; guy was trying to warn woman of thug in backseat of her car.
- F. Thugs hide under cars in malls and cut ankles of women returning to cars.
[Note: 'F.' in the FAQ's parlance means false. 'Fb' means believed false, no evidence has been produced to corroborate the legend.]
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| See also |
Folklorist Jan Harold Brunvand discusses "The Killer in the Backseat" and "The Slasher under the Car" urban legends in:
- The Vanishing Hitchhiker (1981)
- The Choking Doberman (1984)
- The Mexican Pet (1986)
- The Baby Train (1993)
Web references:
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Urban Legend Zeitgeist: Gang Initiation Slashers