California Man Loses $750K Lawsuit Over Taped-Together Lottery Ticket, Gets $153K Bill

A California man who hoped to get his hands on a $750,000 lottery prize has been left with a $150,000 legal bill following a failed attempt to sue the state lottery.

The California Attorney General’s Office claimed the ticket presented by James Densley had been torn into pieces and taped back together, with its play symbols rearranged to create what appeared to be a winning poker hand.

Densley sued the California State Lottery Commission in April 2022, alleging breach of contract after it refused to honor the ticket.

Winning Hand

Densley bought the poker-themed Scratchers ticket in September 2021. The game required players to compare poker hands, and Densley claimed his ticket revealed a flush, beating the lottery’s hand of three queens.

The apparent winning hand carried a $75,000 prize that was subject to a 10-times multiplier, which would have resulted in a $750,000 payout.

But the lottery rejected Densley’s claim around three months after he purchased the ticket.

According to the Attorney General’s Office, the ticket was not in its original condition when he attempted to cash it in.

State lawyers said it had been torn into multiple pieces and subsequently reconstructed using cellophane tape. They alleged the pieces had been rearranged so that the play symbols appeared in a different order, creating the purported winning hand.

California law prohibits the state lottery from paying prizes on tickets that have been altered or counterfeited, as well as certain tickets that are unreadable or lack required play-symbol captions.

Densley nevertheless maintained he was entitled to the $750,000 and took the lottery to court.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kevin C. Brazile disagreed, ultimately granting the state’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit and entering judgment in favor of the lottery. Densley was ordered to pay $153,200 in attorneys’ fees and costs.

Criminal Consequences

Densley was not directly accused of altering the ticket himself. Attempting to fraudulently claim a lottery prize using a tampered ticket can be prosecuted in California as felony grand theft or forgery.

In September 2018, James McMinn of Menifee was convicted of felony perjury after investigators said he taped together pieces of different Powerball tickets in an attempt to claim a $435 million jackpot.

One portion came from a genuine but losing ticket purchased before the drawing, while another contained part of the winning numbers, which were publicly known by the time McMinn assembled his purported winner.

He was sentenced to three years’ probation.