Illinois Tollway errors rile Minnesota

ST. PAUL, Minn., April 24 (UPI) -- The Minnesota attorney general has asked the Illinois Tollway for a moratorium on sending violation notices to Minnesota drivers because of recent errors.

Attorney General Lori Swanson said 12 individuals have filed complaints with her office saying the Illinois Tollway sent them toll violation notices for vehicles that weren't driven in Illinois or weren't owned by the recipient of the notice at the time of the infraction, the Chicago Tribune reported Friday.

Swanson said the alleged violators submitted documents to back up their statements but the tollway still turned the cases over to collection agencies.

"It's not fair for the tollway to place the burden on these citizens who have not created the problem in the first place," Swanson said.

The letter asked tollway acting Executive Director Michael King and Gov. Pat Quinn to place a moratorium on issuing violation notices to Minnesotans until the agency's registration information is updated.

A spokeswoman for Swanson said the attorney general believes dozens of Minnesota motorists have been affected by Illinois Tollway errors but have yet to file official complaints.