Conn. man's last lotto ticket wins $10M for widow

Comment #31

KY Floyd — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 07:30:00 GMT

I don't need to take oyur word. We all know that death and taxes are the only things that are certain (though I'm willing to consider that technology could change the death part).

The value of the ticket is $1.

That's only true before the drawing. After the drawing it's worth nothing or it's worth the value of any prize it won. If you give a ticket to somebody it's a gift. That's what a gift is, after all. The question is how much the gift is worth, and in the case of a winning lottery t... [ More ]

Comment #30

justxploring — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:10:50 GMT

Okay, okay. I wanted to keep my post simple, so I didn't get into all the what ifs and was only referring to the lottery and other similar gifts. I assume she's a US Citizen. They've been married for 59 years. AFAIK a spouse normally would not pay estate tax. However, since I just went through this (on a much, much smaller scale!) when a relative died, I realize nothing is set in stone and anyone can contest a will or something the deceased left behind. Yes, I agree that a trust is a good way to... [ More ]

Comment #29

KY Floyd — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 09:34:37 GMT

You're making a number of assumptions. Suppose his house was owned without the wife having rights of survivorship? Suppose some of the estate was left to somebody other than the spouse, or suppose he didn't have a will? Whether or not there is a surviving spouse isn't the only factor in whether or not the estate goes through probate, or how simple (or protracted) the process is. The only definite way to avoid probate is to have planned in advance to avoid it, such as establishing a trust. Suppos... [ More ]

Comment #28

Lucky$even — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 09:27:32 GMT

Good luck with that anonymity thing. Most states don't allow anonymous jackpot winners. I don't know whether or not this would work, but I've heard that you can circumvent that by becoming incorporated and claiming the winnings on behalf of the corporation. I could be entirely inaccuriate, but I would definitely look into that if I won a big one.

Comment #27

myturn — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:34:58 GMT

Congratulations to her! Why did she go public? What is the situation in Connecticut, are winners required to go public?

I would like the 10 million, but I would like to keep my anonymity.

Comment #26

toogood — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:30:51 GMT

GOD Bless you folks! I'm sorry to hear about your loss....I know the winnings will not bring back a loved one. If your husband/father is anything like my dad he would be laughing his butt off and saying just my luck ! Best of luck in the future and I hope you make all the right decisions with your winnings!

Toogood

Comment #25

justxploring — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 03:03:50 GMT

Sorry, folks. You are wrong. A spouse never has to pay gift or estate tax on any amount. There is no reason for it to go into probate because there is a surviving spouse. They were married for 59 years, meaning she was 18, so I doubt if there will be an ex-wife coming forward to contest it!

(I just looked at the above avatar and, for some reason, I feel as if I'm talking to myself! LOL

Comment #24

Vergie6 — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:37:16 GMT

I agree with you....it has to be signed before it can legally belong to anyone.

Comment #23

OldSchoolPa — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 02:15:31 GMT

I've always wanted a Corvette, but I don't think I'll buy one. I'll stick to a small car. I might go to Mohegan Sun, she said, referring to the casino in Connecticut. I'm going to go home and sit and think.

In my line of work, I find that it is true that most people will go home. They will sit. But they usually don't think about putting into action the logical and best financial steps for them and their family. I mean she went from saying she wanted to buy a showy car to settling for a small... [ More ]

Comment #22

GamerMom — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:43:41 GMT

Unless he signed it how could anyone prove it was his? Of course she opened her mouth about it but legally could they really treat it as if it were his

Comment #21

hearsetrax — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 23:47:44 GMT

am sure in some ways shes laughing @ the ironary all the way to the bank

Comment #20

wizeguy — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 23:00:32 GMT

My condolences to the family. Even at that age losing a loved one is not easy.

Comment #19

RJOh — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 21:12:31 GMT

I'm sure she has been made aware of some of the tax problems with inheriting an annuity as she admitted the ticket was bought by her husband before he died. That could mean that at least half of the ticket was his which means it may be treated as part of his estate when it's probated.

Comment #18

justxploring — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:38:54 GMT

(a) I like to joke around too, but that's very disrespectful. Many people reach 100 without losing control of their bodily functions.

(b) If she's healthy she can buy long term care, although at her age it will be very expensive.

(c) Wealthy, older people have little trouble finding companions, although it's probably more difficult for a woman. After my Mom died, women were always chasing my Dad (and he didn't have a lot of money! lol) So with millions she can always find a boy-toy to rub... [ More ]

Comment #17

charmed7 — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 15:05:06 GMT

How cool is that! Wow, the death was tragic, but she'll be comfortable

for the rest of herdays. I give a portion to my children, and vacation my a--

off.

Comment #16

Coin Toss — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 14:47:02 GMT

She was just on TV and mentioned she was about to throw the ticket away!

There's no doubt in my mind that kind of thing has happened, everything from lottery tickets to a possible cure for a disease.

Honey, where's my notes? I left them on the coffee table

Oh, the neighbors are coming over for coffee and I cleaned up and everything went out with the trash this morning .

Comment #15

GamerMom — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 13:49:27 GMT

nah she will need somebody to change her diapers in a few years

Comment #14

hearsetrax — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:33:15 GMT

am curious to see how this pans out for them .....

personally I'm kinda suprised she just didn't take the money and leave note on the door to the kids

Comment #13

myturn — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 09:51:19 GMT

It could happen, I have lottery subscriptions and if I died my subscriptions could still win. At least people would remember while the money lasts.

Comment #12

dingo — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 07:54:06 GMT

Very good story indeed.

Inheritence Tax is unreasonable.

If I had a mansion, after passing it to my heirs a few times, the mansion's value would be deemed to be worthless to my descendants. They would have to pay tax on the mansion. No wonder many nobles in European Nations could not keep their castles. Eventually they had to donote to the government.

I wonder why don't they tax the White House after each term. I am sure they can collect good money on its current value.... [ More ]

Comment #11

justxploring — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 04:28:01 GMT

RJOh, guess it depends on the family. A few years ago a man won $40 million in FL and gave the ticket to one of his daughters. He said she had a good head on her shoulders and he trusted her to make the right decision. I think he had 4 children and I had the same attitude as you. She was in college and opted for the 30 annual payments.

Not a lot of people realize that the IRS will tax a person's beneficiaries on the lump sum even if there are annual payments. Some people have sued the IRS. I... [ More ]

Comment #10

ThatScaryChick — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 23:22:11 GMT

Comment #9

RJOh — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 23:09:19 GMT

You can bet if one of her children had collected the winnings, the other two would be mad and she wouldn't be able to think about wanting a Corvette or a trip to the local casino. She's better off claiming it herself and seeking the advice of a good tax lawyer to reduce the taxes her relatives will have to pay after she joins her husband.

Comment #8

GamerMom — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 21:39:56 GMT

I wonder if Alanis has read this story!

these stories always give me hope...it said he had been playing for 20 years. I have been playing for just under 5. I can always hope in 15 more years it will be my turn to win

Comment #7

justxploring — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 20:38:46 GMT

Good song, Hearsetrax!

Well, at least this woman has good taste in automobiles. I don't understand why she didn't ask one of her children to claim it, however. Sure she might live 10 or more years, maybe even to 100, but there will be a lot of estate taxes to pay when she dies, unless the laws change. If she takes it in 21 annual payments and dies, it will be even worse for the family. The IRS doesn't care if you inherit a structured annuity from a lottery prize. You still have to pay tax on... [ More ]

Comment #6

ThatScaryChick — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 19:06:30 GMT

Amazing story. It must have been a huge shock to find out that one of the tickets that your dead husband had bought turned out to be a bug winner.

Comment #5

dphillips — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 17:05:55 GMT

My condolences to the widow and her family. Imagine if she had not checked her ticket and thrown it away

Comment #4

hearsetrax — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 16:38:35 GMT

I just had to look it up

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/alanismorissette/ironic.html

Comment #3

time*treat — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 16:30:22 GMT

Alanis' song wasn't so far-fetched after all.

Comment #2

hearsetrax — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 16:20:57 GMT

figgures indeed .......

$5 sez she buys the corvette convertible inside of a year

Comment #1

jarasan — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:44:12 GMT

That is exactly what I would say Figures! .

I can't count the number of times I've stopped playing a P4 number and BAM it hits the next draw! I add an explicative in front of figures.

What a untimely stroke of luck for this family, I hope they fair well.

Conn. man's last lotto ticket wins $10M for widow

Lottery Post — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:17:46 GMT

On the day that Donald Peters died, he unknowingly provided financial security for his wife of 59 years and their family.

Peters bought two Connecticut Lottery tickets at a local 7-Eleven store on Nov. 1 as part of a 20-year tradition he shared with his wife Charlotte. Later that day, the 79-year-old retired hat factory worker suffered a fatal heart attack while working in his yard in Danbury.

On Friday, his widow cashed in one of the tickets: a $10 million winner which, in her grief over