Winners of the Second Largest Lottery Jackpot in History Revealed

Although Mega Millions is played in Washington D.C. and 41 states, both the winning tickets of the second-largest lottery jackpot in history were purchased in small towns just 125 miles apart. Jim and Carolyn McCullar, from Ephrata, Washington, appeared at a news conference last week to announce they won $190 million. Holly Lahti, from Rathdrum, Idaho, has now claimed the remaining half of the jackpot. Lahti is trying to avoid the public attention and keep a low profile.

Although Lahti has claimed her winnings, she has not yet cashed in her ticket. “If she takes a lump sum payment, she would get $120 million before taxes. The federal government would take $30 million, while the Idaho State Tax Commission would take a $9 million slice, leaving her with about $80.7 million.”

Nicholas K. Geranios and John Miller, Idaho Woman Claims $190M Mega Millions Prize, Associated Press, Jan. 12, 2011.

Special thanks to David S. Luber (Attorney at law, Florida Probate Attorney Wills and Estates Law Firm) for bringing this to my attention.