“We all know the Commission is not allowed to change the rules after the drawing,” the lawsuit states. “But the Commission has apparently tried to do so and relied—at least in part—on this ex post facto announcement to continue to refuse to pay Plaintiff her lottery winnings simply because she utilized a lottery ticket courier service to buy the winning ticket.”
A Texas woman has filed a lawsuit against the state’s Lottery Commission, claiming that it has yet to pay out the $83.5 million jackpot she won three months ago.
“Every Texan knows what that should mean when it comes to the lottery—if you win, you should get paid,” the lawsuit states. “It shouldn’t take a lawsuit to get paid when you win the lottery. But that’s exactly what has happened here.”
According to CNN, the plaintiff bought her winning lottery ticket on February 17.
Later, she found that her numbers matched those pulled from a drawing that had taken place earlier in the same day.
However, the plaintiff—who is identified only by the pseudonym “Jane Doe”—did not purchase her tickets in-person, as typically required by law. Instead, she used so-called “courier service” to purchase her tickets digitally, from an application called Jackpocket.
Less than a week after Doe’s numbers won, then-Texas Lottery Commission executive director Ryan Mindell announced that the agency had banned courier servicers like the one that Doe had used.
The ban took effect earlier this month, on May 19.
“We all know the Commission is not allowed to change the rules after the drawing,” the lawsuit states. “But the Commission has apparently tried to do so and relied—at least in part—on this ex post facto announcement to continue to refuse to pay Plaintiff her lottery winnings simply because she utilized a lottery ticket courier service to buy the winning ticket.”
The lawsuit suggests that, if Doe continues to go unpaid, her winnings could be redistributed to other lottery games. It asks the court to issue a temporary restraining order, as well as a temporary injunction, against the lottery’s acting deputy executive director, Sergio Rey.
“[The Lottery Commission] is simply stonewalling the winner, stalling and not being responsible or acting with any integrity,” the lawsuit alleges. “[…] If Mr. Rey is not restrained and enjoined from disbursing or diminishing the Plaintiff’s jackpot prize winnings, Plaintiff will suffer damages that will be incapable of being measured by any certain pecuniary standard before notice is given and a hearing is held on Plaintiff’s Application for Temporary Injunction.”
Doe is seeking the full prize amount, as well as payment for attorney fees and other costs.
“In Texas, a deal is a deal,” the lawsuit says, “unless you are the Texas Lottery.”
Sources
Texas woman sues state lottery after not receiving controversial $83.5M jackpot
Texas woman sues state Lottery Commission for unpaid $83 million jackpot
Woman sues Texas Lottery for not receiving massive prize months after win
Join the conversation!