Mich. lottery winner who kept collecting welfare found dead

Sep 29, 2012, 10:24 pm (66 comments)

Michigan Lottery

A Lincoln Park, Michigan, woman who won $1 million in the Michigan Lottery and was later convicted for still collecting state welfare died Saturday from an apparent drug overdose.

Ecorse Police confirmed Saturday afternoon that Amanda Clayton, of Lincoln Park, was found dead at a residence on Sunnyside Street at 9 a.m.

Shortly after winning the lottery in March, Clayton's story garnered national media attention when she revealed she was still collecting $5,500 from the state in food aid and medical benefits .

Clayton, 25, pleaded no contest to fraud in June and was placed on six months' probation in July.

In August, four people were charged with felonious assault outside of Clayton's residence. The dispute, which involved a baseball bat, knife and toy gun, started as a disagreement over grass clippings between Clayton and her neighbor's lawns.

Clayton isn't the only Michigan Lottery winner to become notorious after making headlines.

In August, millionaire Freddie Young, of Detroit, was sentenced to 20 to 35 years in prison for fatally shooting his daughter's landlord.

Young, 64, was convicted on second-degree murder and felony firearm charges in the May 2011 killing of Australian native Gregory McNicol.

Prosecutors said Young won an estimated $1.57 million share of a Michigan Lottery jackpot in February 2011. Three months later, he shot 45-year-old McNicol over $1,000 in back rent owed by his daughter.

News story photo(Click to display full-size in gallery)

Thanks to dpoly1 and emilyg for the tip.

The Detroit News

Comments

Litebets27's avatarLitebets27

The curse of winning a Jackpot....

Ronnie316

I do believe that drug abuse was the "curse" in this case.

sully16's avatarsully16

How sad, she could have had the world at her fingertips, RIP Amanda, may you find peace.

haymaker's avatarhaymaker

Maybe now michigan may consider anonymous also.

rdgrnr's avatarrdgrnr

What a sad ending to what should have been a happy story.

May she rest in peace.

RedStang's avatarRedStang

I hope she died broke or the rest of the $ goes to a good cause.

LottoBoner

Very sad.  Its a good lesson for lottery winners overall.  Too bad for this lottery winner the price to learn was more than one should pay.

I will be extra careful now and resist as much peer pressure as possible to buy large quantities of cocaine when i win.

I knew those bolivians moving in next door was a bad luck sign.Scared

Thinking of...

Scientistman

Im sad

 

I liked her.  Disapprove

 

I can't believe this!

 

And she won on Sept 11th too hmm?

VenomV12

This is just terrible. 

 

R.I.P.

Piaceri

Too bad she was not able to get some help with her winnings. People make bad choices. And sometimes those choices are fatal.

 

RIP Amanda, may you find the peace you seek in the afterlife.

Simba774

This is sad.  She was only 25 years old and drugs were the cause. I don't believe the lottery is cursed. That's ridiculous.  If everyone who ever won the lottery died soon after, then I probably would believe a curse does exist, but until then, no.

GYM RICE

I can't imagine the amount of harrassment she must have been going through once the story broke about her. 

 

RIP

MillionsWanted's avatarMillionsWanted

She might have been  given an overdose by people she didn't want to share her winnings with.

IPlayWeekly's avatarIPlayWeekly

RIP, very sad story

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