The Texas Lottery Commission has approved a payout of $45.8 million before taxes to Houston-area resident Kristen Moriarty from her $83.5 million jackpot. According to KHOU, the decision comes after a delay of more than five months following the initial announcement of her win.
Moriarty, who secured her ticket on February 17 through the online lottery courier Jackpocket, was initially denied her winnings due to ongoing investigations by the Department of Public Safety and Attorney General Ken Paxton's office into the legality of such courier services, the Texas Lottery Commission cited these reasons for holding up the payout even though Moriarty had already chosen her numbers, and the draw had declared her the winner; these services came under intense scrutiny by the Texas legislature.
In response to the delay, Moriarty filed a lawsuit against the commission in May, and in a statement obtained by The Texas Tribune, she expressed her frustration, saying, "I'm sad, stressed, angry that this has become a political thing." She added, "I've lost faith in our elected officials. And yeah, I really don't know what else to say that I can say out loud."
The controversy around lottery couriers seems to have peaked following an incident where a group bought the majority of available tickets to secure a $95 million win in 2023, this led to a new law criminalizing the use of couriers and set limitations on bulk ticket purchases, yet Patrick and other lawmakers remained on edge, their suspicion still clouding over the jackpot win and leading to further inquests into these services' operations.
The Attorney General’s office has not yet released any public statements regarding the settlement or the findings of its investigation into Jackpocket’s operations. As part of the settlement, Kristen Moriarty’s extended wait for her lottery winnings is nearing an end, with the Texas Lottery Commission—set to be dissolved on September 1—resolving one of its final major cases. After the commission's dissolution, oversight of the state’s lottery and charitable bingo operations will transition to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, though the details of how these functions will be managed have not been clarified.
