People ex rel. Edgar v. Topping

The Secretary of State appeals from an order of the trial court directing the Secretary to issue a judicial driving permit (JDP) (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1989, ch. 95V2, par. 6 — 206.1) to the defendant, Frank E. Topping. We reverse.

Initially, we note that the defendant has not submitted an appellee’s brief. Nevertheless, when the record is simple and the court of review can easily decide the disputed errors without an appellee’s brief, the reviewing court may decide the merits of the appeal. First Capitol Mortgage Corp. v. Talandis Construction Corp. (1976), 63 Ill. 2d 128, 345 N.E.2d 493.

The record…