Chapter 1: Speeding leads to more fatal wrecks than alcohol. But the state's leaders lack the political will to make speeders pay. A death in Southport shows the human cost.

Chapter 2: District attorneys, swamped by too many speeders, are staging what Wake Magistrate Dexter L. Williams calls "Let's Make a Deal Court." Only a chump pleads guilty as charged.

Chapter 3: For every tough law passed to punish speeders, there are several ways to avoid the penalty: Legislators bless PJCs, 'improper equipment' sham, DA deals.

Chapter 4: A Guilford County judge gives free passes to speeders going as fast as 115. He says he just takes them one case at a time.

When a Raleigh police officer catches you speeding, the standbys of batted eyelashes or a fairly realistic excuse are no longer likely bets to keep you out of court.

In an unusual turnaround, the state House resurrected the legislation, which will make it tougher for high-speed drivers to cut sweet deals with prosecutors and judges.

The legislation was aimed at tightening loopholes that allowed chronic speeders and drivers charged with driving exceptionally fast to escape punishment.

State Trooper Daniel S. Jenkins Jr., who patrols the highways of Orange County, writes more tickets for reckless driving than any other officer in the Highway Patrol. He sees some of those speeders again -- at a driving school owned by his father.

Saunders:The 14 Triangle residents seated in a room in a Glenwood Avenue office building in Raleigh on Saturday didn't realize it at the time, but the group was probably making history.

The state Senate hurriedly approved a bill Wednesday that would help slow down high-speed drivers and repeat offenders.

Legislative leaders said Monday that the General Assembly should immediately begin plugging loopholes that allow chronic speeders and drivers charged with extremely high speeds to escape punishment.

In late April, staff writer Pat Stith interviewed Guilford District Court Judge William "Pete" Hunter about his use of "prayers for judgment continued" in high-speed cases.

We asked people to tell us what happened in court.

Raleigh officers charge about one-fourth with a city code violation.

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