Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, December 21, 1993 TAG: 9312210101
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MIKE HUDSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Nonetheless, North Carolinians smuggle an estimated $75 million worth of lottery tickets south of the border each year - and nobody worries too much about being thrown in the slammer for playing Pick 3.
"Technically speaking, it's against the law," said Andy Vanore, North Carolina's chief deputy attorney general. "But no district attorney that I'm aware of who is in his right mind is going to prosecute somebody for that . . . .
"Realistically, nobody's paying any attention to it."
Vanore said the law might be used in the case of someone who was transporting tickets across the state line for resale.
When he was told that Norman Reggie Thomas, a North Carolina resident, had won a share of Virginia's $20.5 lottery jackpot, Vanore said, "More power to him."
Virginia Lottery spokeswoman Paula Otto said that at least a dozen North Carolinians have won big prizes from Virginia, and there's never been any problem.
She said she has heard of a case in which one North Carolinian was prosecuted for possessing Virginia Lottery tickets with the intention of reselling them, and another case in which someone was charged when a lottery ticket was found during his arrest on unrelated charges.
Otto said Virginia Lottery officials did a study this year when the North Carolina General Assembly considered passing a state lottery. Virginia officials wanted to determine the financial impact on the state's lottery take if North Carolina passed one.
Best estimates were that about 8 percent of Virginia's Lottery tickets are bought by North Carolinians - or $70 million to $75 million worth a year. Of that, about $25 million ends up in Virginia's general fund.
North Carolina legislators will take up the issue of starting a Tar Heel lottery when they meet again next spring.
by CNB