This is the story that deserves to be an Urban Legend. It's not; I know the guy it
happened to, and I watched the aftermath.
Around 1992 or 1993, there was a winter, and spring, where it rained or snowed every
weekend for two months. One friday, there was a spectacular thunderstorm over the entire
tri-state area. Jeff, my coworker, left work driving to Boston in an old Mazda sports
car. He came back Monday in an even older Volvo with the following story:
He was crossing the Tappan Zee bridge in a driving rain when the cars ahead of him
in his lane abruptly braked. He hit his brakes and managed to come to a stop. The
large American station wagon behind him did not, and accordioned his small, Japanese,
plastic car between the car in front and the Detroit Dinosaur. The
station wagon then pulled into the other lane and disappeared into the storm. Nobody got
a good look at the car, never mind the plates. His car is mangled, hit and run, and his
insurance company gets pissy with him, Starts to look like he's going to get stuck for the
money. He buys the Volvo as an approximate replacement.
On the first nice day after the accident, four or five days later, he went and looked more
closely at his sad and crumpled car. Stamped into the plastic rear bumper was an impression
of the station wagon's licence plate. He took some pictures, cut it out and sent it to the
officer who'd taken the accident report.
Today's moral: Sometimes justice does work.