Brickbat: Luck of the Draw

Carl McCain won $800 on a lottery ticket, but when he went to claim his prize, North Carolina officials told him the money was being taken to pay debts he owed to Lenoir County and Wayne County. North Carolina law allows the state to seize winnings to cover state or local debts, but McCain said the debts weren't his and that he had never been to those counties. He called county officials and found the debt belonged to someone with a similar name, but their records listed McCain's Social Security number, causing the mix-up. Still, nothing happened for over a month. Finally, after he reached out to a TV reporter, officials corrected the error and McCain received his winnings in the mail.