Lottery winner collecting welfare charged with fraud

[spidey07]

Ouch. Two felonies. This story came out a while ago where the lottery winner went on TV and said she was collecting food stamps and welfare after winning 500k.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-04-17/lottery-winner-welfare-fraud/54342934/1

Each of the two charges of welfare fraud, failure to inform is punishable by up to four years in prison.

"It's simply common sense that million-dollar lottery winners forfeit their right to public assistance," Schuette said in a statement.

Clayton won the televised game Sept 12, 2011, and reportedly took home more than $500,000. She told WDIV-TV that she thought she was justified in continuing to collect the state payments after her windfall because she was now unemployed.

"I feel that it's OK because, I mean, I have no income and I have bills to pay,' she said. 'I have two houses.' "

 

[Saint Nick]

Her punishment is well-deserved.

 

[rcpratt]

Great job, Michigan - give her welfare that she doesn't deserve, and now pay more to incarcerate her. Brilliant.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

"I have two houses"

Sell one of them dumbass

 

[sourceninja]

No reason to send her to jail, finer her for money paid and stop paying her welfare.

 

[airdata]

at least they'll have money on their books when they're in jail.

 

[Beev]

No reason to send her to jail, finer her for money paid and stop paying her welfare.

Yep, let her life work itself out. It will go poorly, and that's absolutely what she deserves.

 

[sixone]

No reason to send her to jail, finer her for money paid and stop paying her welfare.

Au contraire. She was stealing from the taxpayers, and that should be punishable with jail time.

That said, if she has a clean record, she almost certainly won't get jail time.

 

[96Firebird]

Local guy was busted for the same thing. He hadn't been collecting on welfare very long, but it's stupid nonetheless.

http://www.whec.com/article/stories/S2579479.shtml?cat=0

 

[Bazake]

Odds that she'll blow all that dough and end up back on welfare??

 

[sixone]

Odds that she'll blow all that dough and end up back on welfare??

6:1

 

[destrekor]

Instead of sending her to jail, tally up what it would cost to keep her locked up, then fine her that. Add that to whatever other punitive damages they had planned. Win win for all - except for her dumbass, which would learn a very valuable lesson. Jail doesn't exactly teach lessons for everyone, and can make harder/smarter criminals in the end.

Sounds like a naive and retarded woman, and the punishment should be designed to fit the case. Jail isn't necessary - collecting moneys, however... well, Michigan could use it.

 

[Drekce]

Au contraire. She was stealing from the taxpayers, and that should be punishable with jail time.

That said, if she has a clean record, she almost certainly won't get jail time.

But then the taxpayers are paying even more for her which makes even less sense. I agree that she should have to repay, with interest all of the money she stole.

 

[SillyOReilly]

Great job, Michigan - give her welfare that she doesn't deserve, and now pay more to incarcerate her. Brilliant.

Really? This is how you rationalize the story and think what you just said makes any sense?

 

[umbrella39]

You can take the girl out of the white trailer trash park but you can't take the white trailer trash park out of the girl.

 

[0roo0roo]

well they punished one side of the equation...how their agency didn't check...that is the part that boggles the mind.

 

[Zebo]

Fraud is huge in welfare. Drug dealers are on on it, day cash laborers, prostitutes and anyone else with black market income streams. This is one reason why it needs a work requirement. If you have to show up someplace 40 hrs a week and you're making good money on the side, you won't and govt keeps it's money.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Fraud is huge in welfare. Drug dealers are on on it, day cash laborers, prostitutes and anyone else with black market income streams. This is one reason why it needs a work requirement. If you have to show up someplace 40 hrs a week and you're making good money on the side, you won't and govt keeps it's money.

Another reason why govt assistance of any form is a bad idea.
Fuck the poor.

 

[jagec]

Fraud is huge in welfare. Drug dealers are on on it, day cash laborers, prostitutes and anyone else with black market income streams. This is one reason why it needs a work requirement. If you have to show up someplace 40 hrs a week and you're making good money on the side, you won't and govt keeps it's money.

There IS a work requirement:

Under the requirements imposed in 1996, states are supposed to have half their welfare recipients working to avoid sanctions that eat into their welfare block grants, known as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. Welfare recipients have to work, do community service or take vocational education classes for 20 hours a week. They are also expected to be out of the house 10 more hours a week, in education, volunteer or community service programs.

Some states go above and beyond those minimums. The reason why it's not 100% of welfare recipients is that lots of them are disabled, looking but not employed, too young or too old, etc.

Now, welfare fraud IS a problem, and it should be prosecuted aggressively, but the problem is one of enforcement, not legislation. Those drug dealers on welfare--are they getting disability notes from their doctor? Fake timecards from a job? Someone signing off on classes that they don't attend? People "looking for work" without any actual evidence that they are sending out resumes and making calls? By all means, look into that and clamp down on the scammers.

But of course there is no political will to do so, since people who defraud the government go on to get elected to high-ranking positions. Looking at you, Rick Scott.

 

[sixone]

But then the taxpayers are paying even more for her which makes even less sense. I agree that she should have to repay, with interest all of the money she stole.

The court should require her to cover those costs, as well as reimbursing for the money she already took, plus interest.

After all, she has two houses.

 

[lxskllr]

au contraire. She was stealing from the taxpayers, and that should be punishable with jail time.

↓↓↓

 

[waffleironhead]

greed is good

 

[sixone]

Plus, if she's convicted of a felony, she'll lose her voting privileges. As she should.

 

[PingSpike]

The first rule of welfare fraud is do not talk about welfare fraud. Especially to the media. Good god. They really don't seem to do any enforcement checks but if you shout out to the whole planet that you're cheating them the government pretty much has to arrest you just to shut everyone up.

 

[alkemyst]

Actually in many places the uber wealthy can still collect assistance because they have no 'income'. Assets are ignored.

In fact this place the lady from specifically changed the welfare law based on another lottery winner.

She and her lawyer may not have known.