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Lottery Winner On Food Stamps Sent To Jail

MOUNT PLEASANT (WWJ/AP) - The man who made headlines for using food stamps despite winning a lottery jackpot has been sentenced to 45 days in jail for a drug crime.

Leroy Fick of Bay City was pulled over for a speeding last fall when police found he was in posession of the painkiller hydromorphone, for which he did not have a prescription. He was sentenced Thursday in central Michigan's Isabella County.

Defense lawyer John Wilson argued that his client used the drugs for a bad back. Fick will get credit for three days already served and likely shave more time off the 45-day sentence with good behavior.

Fick, 59, won the $2 million jackpot in the "Make Me Rich!" contest in 2010. Despite receiving about $850,000 in winnings, Fick attracted national attention last spring for using his Michigan Bridge Card, an electronic version of food stamps.

At the time, the state said the lump sum payment wasn't counted as income, which left him eligible to continue receiving the state aid.

TM and © Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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