SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) – Illinois truck drivers will be the target of a 24-hour traffic enforcement effort by state troopers honoring a colleague who died while on duty.
Trooper James Sauter died on March 28, 2013 when his patrol car was struck by a tractor-trailer on Interstate 294 in suburban Cook County. The Wisconsin trucker who killed the trooper after falling asleep was sentenced to two years in prison.
“Operation Sauter” begins on Monday, the three-year anniversary of its namesake’s death.
State police will check commercial driver’s logbooks to ensure they are properly documenting the number of hours driven.
The driver who killed Sauter had exceeded the 14-hour daily legal limit and filed a false work log to hide that violation.