The New Hampshire Lottery said on Monday it would not appeal a court decision that the woman, who owns a $559.7 million Powerball ticket, could keep her identity a secret. The woman, called Jane Dow, won the lottery on Jan. 6 and found out that she was able to hide her identity after signing her lucky ticket. Her lawyers say they were able to write the name of the trust instead of providing their own name.
Apparently, she wanted to remain anonymous, so the state lottery sued the public to hide her name. Last week, Judge Charles Temple of the Hillsborough County High Court ruled that releasing her name was an invasion of privacy. Nevertheless, the New Hampshire lottery could reveal her hometown, the court added. The winner’s lawyer, William Shaheen of P.A. Shaheen & Gordon, says she is from the town of Merimac, about 30 miles from the state capital Concord.
According to media reports, the lucky woman has already donated about $250,000 to various charities and plans to make more donations. Her lawyer says she hopes to donate $25 million, about $264 million of the prize money she earned after the donation.
The Curse of the Lottery: Myth or More?
Judge Temple said in the ruling that the woman’s identity would be a victim of “bullying, solicitation and other unwanted communications.” The winner’s lawyers also said there are many cases of bad experiences because they disclosed the identity of the lottery winners. In fact, it is widely believed that a big win can bring bad luck.
Many people regard the so-called “Curses of Lotto” as just a myth, but there are many cases where lottery winners, after winning big, declare bankruptcy, become fraudulent or worse victims, or commit suicide. On Christmas morning in 2002, American businessman Andrew “Jack” Whitaker received a $314.9 million Powerball win, the biggest win he ever received at the time.
Within a few months after that, he was stolen. In the second case, $200,000 was taken from his car. In the same year, his granddaughter’s boyfriend was found dead at Whitaker’s house, and within a few months, his granddaughter, Brandy, was also found dead in suspicious circumstances. In the years that followed, several lawsuits were filed against the winner and his company. He lost almost everything and seven years after the big win, his daughter died. In 2016, Whitaker’s house burned down in a fire, and his wife has since filed for divorce.바카라사이트
In 1997, Billy Bob Harrell won $31 million in the Texas Lottery and donated a huge amount of money to various charities. At one point, people started coming to his front door asking for money, and he and his family decided to move. He was also forced to change his phone number to avoid requests from strangers. Two years after winning, he divorced and took his own life. These are two of the less shocking stories associated with the curse of the lottery – tragedy, mysterious death, and far more incidents that ended in murder.