LOTTO WINNER HITS ANOTHER JACKPOT
Court: She can stay anonymous
The mystery woman who won the nearly $560 million Powerball jackpot in New Hampshire two months ago can remain anonymous, according to a Granite State judge who found her right to privacy outweighs any public interest in her identity.
“(T)he Court has no doubt whatsoever that should Ms. Doe’s identity be revealed, she will be subject to an alarming amount of harassment, solicitation, and other unwanted communications,” Judge Charles Temple wrote in yesterday’s decision.
However, Jane Doe’s hometown, Merrimack, N.H., was disclosed.
“The Lottery Commission has a right to say the winner came from Merrimack, but everything else she is entitled to a right to privacy,” said Attorney William Shaheen, in a statement. “The Commission is enjoined from ever releasing her name or address permanently.”
New Hampshire Lottery Executive Director Charlie McIntyre said in a statement that the commission was “expecting a different outcome,” and that it will discuss “appropriate next steps” with the New Hampshire attorney general’s office.
Doe put her name and address on the winning ticket for the Jan 6. draw, but before she sent it to the New Hampshire Lottery Commission, she turned to attorneys to see if she could remain anonymous. As part of their bid to keep her name out of the news, Doe’s attorneys created a trust to shield her identity and asked the commission not to identify her.
However, the commission argued that it was required to disclose her name and hometown as the information was already written on the ticket. They argued that the public needs to know the name of lottery winners because it shows that “the games played are on the level and that the winners are bonafide lottery participants.”
Doe countered by pointing to numerous occasions when lottery winners were harassed and targeted for their newfound fortunes — a claim the commission had unsuccessfully sought to brush off as anecdotal.
“Although the Commission seemingly contends that these are isolated examples, there is evidence suggesting that Ms. Doe would also be subject to similar unwanted communication,” Temple wrote.
Doe accepted the massive prize through her attorneys last week and made several donations to charity — including $150,000 to Girls Inc. and $33,000 each to three New Hampshire chapters of End 68 Hours of Hunger.
The woman is collecting a lumpsum cash prize of $352 million, which will get whittled down to $264 million after taxes.
The winning ticket was sold at Reed’s Ferry Market in Merrimack, N.H., for the Jan. 6 drawing. Jane Doe was the 11th Powerball jackpot winner in New Hampshire history, and her massive payout is the biggest in state history.