Lottery Winner ARRESTED Again For This!

Powerball lottery play slips with a black pen — Photo: Scott Habermann / Shutterstock

A $167 million Powerball winner was found asleep in a running car at a Walmart and arrested for public intoxication.

Story Snapshot

Deputies found James Farthing in a running car in a Walmart lot after a 2:57 a.m. call.
Officers reported signs of alcohol and marijuana use and poor balance.
Farthing said a woman drove him, but video reportedly showed no one exiting his car.
This marks another arrest since his 2024 jackpot win, with a public intoxication charge.

What Deputies Say Happened In The Walmart Lot

Scott County deputies responded to a caller who saw a white Ford Mustang at an intersection around 2:57 a.m., then parked at a Walmart on Osborne Way. Reports say officers found James Farthing asleep in the running car. They woke him by knocking on the window. Deputies wrote that he smelled of alcohol and marijuana, had bloodshot, watery eyes, slurred speech, and unsteady balance. They arrested him for alcohol intoxication in a public place and booked him into the county jail.

Farthing told officers that a woman had driven him and left. Reports based on the arrest citation say deputies checked surveillance footage. They say the video showed no one getting out of the Mustang after it pulled in. That detail, if correct, undercut his claim and supported the view that he may have operated the car while impaired. The charge remained public intoxication, not driving under the influence, based on the reports shared so far.

Why “Asleep In A Running Car” Still Triggers Charges

Public intoxication laws focus on safety in shared spaces. Officers often rely on the “totality of the circumstances” to decide if someone poses a risk. Common signs include odor, slurred speech, glassy eyes, and poor balance. Courts have long allowed officer observation to establish probable cause without a chemical test. That is why a person asleep in a running car in a public lot can face arrest, even if no breath or blood reading is reported at the time.

Many readers assume that no test means no case. That is not how this works. If an officer can point to clear signs that a person is impaired and could endanger others, a public intoxication arrest is common. The setting matters. A busy parking lot with a running vehicle at 3 a.m. raises obvious concerns. Officers must make fast, safe choices. Waiting for a driver to move the car can invite harm to bystanders and to the driver too.

The Surveillance Claim And The Risk Curve

The reporting says deputies checked lot video and did not see a second person exit the Mustang. That claim, if accurate, pushes the risk curve higher. It suggests he likely drove there while impaired, and it weakens any safe-harbor story about getting a ride. The charge was still public intoxication, which fits the officers’ observed signs. That charge draws a clearer safety line for officers and the public in a high-traffic retail zone at night.

Kentucky Powerball winner and all-around idiot, James Farthing, has been arrested for public intoxication.

This is only the most recent arrest for Farthing, who won a $167.3 million Powerball in April of 2025.

He’s been arrested at least 2 other times since winning.

He’ll… pic.twitter.com/1N03923f29

— Kentucky Girl (@Kentuckygirl1) September 22, 2026

Some local outlets framed this as the fifth arrest since Farthing’s jackpot. That pattern made the story go viral. The larger lesson is not about luck or fame. It is about simple choices that protect others. Parking lots are full of families and workers at all hours. Police have a duty to act before a bad decision becomes a crash or a fight. Conservative common sense says you do not risk your neighbors’ safety for a buzz and a nap in a running car.

How Media Heat Meets Everyday Policing

Cases like this draw clicks because a giant lottery win collides with late-night police work. Strip away the headlines and the core is routine: a running car, a sleeping adult, clear signs of impairment, and a public place. Officers documented what they saw and made an arrest. Court outcomes will sort the rest. That is how the system should work. If surveillance holds up as described, it will anchor the state’s version of events at the next step.

What To Watch Next

Court filings will show how prosecutors proceed. Defense counsel may test the surveillance claim and the officer observations. A judge will weigh whether the facts meet the law’s bar for public intoxication. None of that changes the basic warning for everyone else: if you have been drinking, hand over the keys, get a sober ride, and do not sleep in a running car in a public lot. That choice turns a quiet night into a police stop fast.