Here’s a trend I’d like to see take off in 2016 – minding your own business. In the social media era, that may be impossible, but it has become more and more obvious that folks are getting their entire lives off watching and commenting on the perceived downfall of others.
Case in point: North Carolina Powerball winner Marie Holmes. The 26-year-old single mother of four was living in a trailer when she bought a winning lottery ticket to the tune of $188 million. The attractive young woman took a financial advisor, lawyer and security guard to her press conference and then proceeded to live her life. She would have likely been mostly forgotten in the 24-hour news cycle if not for her fianceè, alleged drug dealer Lamarr”Hot Sauce” McDow.
Holmes has now posted bond for McDow’s bail a total of four times, with each bail getting higher, up to $12 million the last time. According to published reports, McDow’s bail doubles each time Dow violates the terms of his pre-trial agreement. Holmes’ public life choices have sent the internet into a shaming frenzy, calling her a “dumbass,” “stupid” and several other names for bailing McDow out.
But here’s what folks are missing. For one, Holmes has $88 million at her disposal. She has spent, so far, in non-refundable bail fees, a total of $630,000 to keep her man out of jail. That is a lot of money, to be sure, but it doesn’t even represent a tenth of what is at her disposal. In just about any family in America, if you have a relative who is in jail, you’ll try to bail him out if you can afford to, even if he’s a lifelong jailbird. In most cases, you can’t afford to, nor can many families afford decent counsel, which is why so many innocent Black men end up spending years in prison for crimes they didn’t commit.
But let’s say Mr. McDow, 31, is, in fact, guilty of what he’s accused of. Before last year, Holmes was a struggling single parent of four in a bad financial position as she readily admitted. The money was a blessing for her and her children and one she seemed to appreciate. Holmes also donated over $800,000 to her family’s church, something that got much less attention than her boyfriend’s troubles.
Alleged dealer McDow is Holmes’ youngest child’s father and as he says in the interview below, they grew up together and have been dating for two years. So it’s possible that when Holmes was struggling, that he helped her feed her children whether they were all his or not? Is it more than likely that if that were the case, that she’s just looking out for a man who looked out for her? Is it possible that even now, if this guy is the town kingpin, as alleged, that he and his reputation are actually protecting her from even worse since it’s a small town where everyone knows who she is and what she has?
McDow spoke to an Atlanta reporter in October. See what he has to say HERE.
Marie Holmes’ Money Is Long…And It Ain’t Yours was originally published on blackamericaweb.com
