From a press release:

Identifying such abuse as “privacy theft,” Attorney General Lisa Madigan today filed a lawsuit against a Florida company that for roughly $100 and a cell phone number will use allegedly illegal means to access an individual’s cell phone or land line records.

Madigan filed the complaint today in Sangamon County Circuit Court against Kenneth Gorman, director; Steven Schwartz, secretary; and 1st Source Information Specialists, Inc., d/b/a locatecell.com, celltolls.com, datafind.org and peoplesearchamerica.com. The company is located in Tamarac, Florida.

Madigan, who subpoenaed locatecell.com approximately two weeks ago, sued the defendants under the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.

“This entire enterprise is an outrageous invasion of personal privacy that could put lives in danger,” Madigan said. “The possibility of harm from this ‘service’ to victims of domestic violence and law enforcement is enormous. As Attorney General, I will do everything in my power to stop this abuse.”

Madigan’s complaint alleges that 1st Source made misrepresentations to telecommunications companies to obtain phone records by calling companies and posing as the customers, agents or employees of the company; made misrepresentations to telecommunication companies online by posing as consumers to gain unauthorized access to online accounts; sold phone records illegally obtained; and misrepresented to consumers via the Web sites that they had legally obtained the call records.

Madigan said the defendants only need to be provided with a third party’s cell phone or land line telephone number to achieve their goal of obtaining the cell phone records. In fact, some of the sites offer a discount if the customer includes the consumer’s name and address along with the cell or land line number.

UPDATE: From Crain’s:

A Cook County Circuit Court Judge Friday denied Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s petition to stop state utility regulators from approving Commonwealth Edison Co.’s plan for an auction among power generators that is expected to sharply increase electricity rates next year.

The decision by Judge Nancy Arnold, which originally was expected next week but instead was issued Friday afternoon, clears the way for the Illinois Commerce Commission’s scheduled vote next Tuesday on the plan. Commission staff and an administrative law judge have recommended approval. Gov. Rod Blagojevich has urged commissioners to vote against.

Judge Arnold ruled that the attorney general has alternative avenues to appeal the commission’s decision if it approves the auction. Foremost among those is appeal directly to the Illinois Appellate Court, which the law allows, she wrote.

“The court sees no reason to interject itself into what has been, and will no doubt continue to be, an orderly process,” she wrote.