Iowa winner sues to TRIPLE his $9 million lottery jackpot in a landmark court case
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‘Lucky Larry’ Dawson, seen here with wife Kathy in 2011, is on track to triple his original jackpot to a total of $25.5 million. PHOTO: Iowa Lottery
In 2011 a jubilant Larry Dawson won $9 million in the now-closed Hot Lotto game. Dawson chose the immediate cash option, so after taxes, he took home about $4.2 million.
But later, some events were to make him determined in February 2016 to claim almost three times the jackpot amount.
It started when Eddie Tipton, the former security director of the Multi-State Lottery Association, was convicted in 2015 of fixing a $16.5 million Hot Lotto jackpot.
In this Sept. 9, 2015, file photo, Eddie Tipton leaves the Polk County Courthouse in Des Moines, Iowa, after his sentencing. PHOTO: AP/Charlie Neibergall.
Tipton had bought the winning ticket for himself and then tried to claim the jackpot prize using associates.
But the Iowa lottery refused to pay out the prize until the identity of the ticket buyer was revealed, and eventually Tipton’s lawyer gave up the case. The money went unclaimed.
Dawson, a financial planner of Webster City, claims that the $16.5 million should have carried over to the jackpot he won. He said had the jackpot not been rigged, he should have won a prize worth $25.5 million in total.
So he filed a lawsuit for the larger amount. Judge Carla Schemmel ruled that the lottery was not immune from liability and the case will go to jury trial December 2, 2019.
Larry Dawson claims the Hot Lotto jackpot prize in the May 7, 2011 drawing. Larry planned to invest his winnings into expanding his family business.
