Lead-footed drivers are starting

to get sticker shock in Fayette County State Court.

In addition to a fine, Judge

Fletcher Sams has been ordering repeat speeders to display a special bumper

sticker on their vehicles. The lime green color helps draw attention to

the sticker's message:

"In case of moving violation

contact State Court of Fayette County 770-461-4703."

Needless to say, the stickers

aren't popular at all.

"They hate the stickers,

just hate them," Sams said of the facial expressions he sees as he

hands over the sticker. "It does ugly up a car."

Just the other day, Sams spotted

one of his stickers (they're hard to miss) on a brand new Mercedes. Another

time, he saw one on a red pickup truck.

"Every one I have seen

has been driving below the speed limit," Sams said.

Only one driver has appeared

before Sams after getting the new sticker, and that was only for a seat

belt violation, Sams said.

The judge said he hopes the

stickers get the drivers' attention in a way that fines haven't. He acknowledges

the stickers create a factor of public embarrassment, but he likens that

to the old days in Fayette County under Probate Judge James White, who

had a standard sentence for speeders in his court.

"They were raking leaves

at the courthouse square every Saturday," Sams recalled. "So

everybody knew who was speeding."

Still, Sams contends the bumper

stickers serve as an excellent reminder for local motorists to slow down.

"These are going to folks

who have unhealthy driving records who, in my opinion, the court has failed

to get their attention by any other means," Sams said.

"They're scared to death

with that bumper sticker on their car."

The bumper sticker idea sprouted

from a local speeder who appeared before Sams several times for speeding

and later for violating his probation by speeding again somewhere else.

Even a 24-hour jail sentence didn't get the message across.

Frustrated, Sams eventually

gave the chronic speeder a sticky note to place on the dashboard of his

car with the gentle reminder: "Judge Sams is watching me."

The note was eventually replaced

the note on display.

Afterward, the same guy was

caught speeding twice in other jurisdictions. Both times the troopers

wrote on the tickets that they noticed the brass plate.

Now, however, the judge is

satisfied that the former speeder has been rehabilitated. "He has

really turned the corner," Sams noted.