If you were to walk into the Lowell Correctional Institution in Ocala, Florida today, you might run into a woman who looks like any other inmate in her 50s. She’s polite in interviews. She talks about the law with the fervor of a seasoned attorney. But Dorice "Dee Dee" Moore isn’t just any prisoner.
She’s the woman who famously swindled and murdered lottery winner Abraham Shakespeare after he hit a $30 million jackpot. Honestly, the case still feels like a bad movie script, but for Shakespeare’s family, the nightmare never really ended. Even now, in 2026, the ripple effects of her "cold, calculating, and cruel" actions—as the judge once put it—are still being felt in the Florida legal system.
Where Is Dee Dee Moore Today?
Dee Dee Moore is currently serving a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. She isn't getting out. Ever.
On top of the life sentence, she has an additional 25-year "minimum mandatory" sentence for using a firearm. Florida doesn't play around with that. While most people remember the 2012 trial where she showed almost no emotion, Moore hasn't exactly been silent behind bars. She’s become a bit of a jailhouse advocate in a very weird, specific way.
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Back in 2022, she actually surfaced in the news for supporting a Florida bill that would keep the identities of lottery winners secret for at least 90 days. It’s kinda ironic, right? The woman who hunted a winner for his money is now the one saying, "Hey, we need to protect these people."
Moore argued that 90 days isn't even enough. From her cell, she claimed that winners need at least six months to "change their whole life around" before the vultures descend. She’s not wrong about the vultures, but coming from her, it’s a tough pill to swallow.
The Never-Ending Appeals
If you think she's accepted her fate, you've got it all wrong. Dee Dee Moore is still fighting her conviction with everything she’s got.
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In late 2023 and throughout the subsequent years, she’s been back in court trying to secure a new trial. Her latest angle? She’s claiming her original defense team was "overloaded" and failed her. She also threw out some pretty wild accusations about police corruption in Lakeland, suggesting drug dealers were the real culprits and that the cops were on the take.
Why the Courts Aren't Buying It
- Conflicting Stories: Over the years, Moore has blamed a mysterious lawyer, her own teenage son, and "Greg Smith" (the man who actually helped the police catch her).
- Lack of Evidence: Her claims of a "secret recording" that would clear her name haven't held up in front of a judge.
- Past History: Let’s not forget Moore once staged her own kidnapping and sexual assault in 2001 just to keep a car from being repossessed. The "manipulative" tag the judge gave her stuck for a reason.
The courts upheld her conviction in 2015 and 2019, calling her arguments "confusing, conclusory, and vague." As of early 2026, she remains in the general population at Lowell, still insisting to anyone who will listen that she’s the victim of a massive conspiracy.
The Shakespeare Legacy: What Actually Changed?
Abraham Shakespeare's death wasn't just a tabloid headline. It actually changed how Florida handles lottery wins.
Before Dee Dee Moore, your name, city, and winnings were public record the moment you cashed that ticket. Now, thanks in part to the "target" Moore put on Shakespeare, winners of $250,000 or more can keep their names private for 90 days. It gives them a head start to get a lawyer and a financial advisor who isn't trying to bury them under a concrete slab.
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The Real Cost of the $30 Million
- The Fortune: By the time Moore was arrested, almost all of Shakespeare's money was gone.
- The Assets: His million-dollar home was eventually returned to his estate after a judge ruled Moore never actually paid him for it.
- The Family: Shakespeare's mother and his two sons have had to watch this case get re-hashed in documentaries like Hulu's Web of Death and 20/20.
Moving Forward: Lessons from the Case
Dee Dee Moore today serves as a grim reminder of why "sudden wealth" is often a curse. If you or someone you know ever finds themselves holding a winning ticket, the "Dee Dee Moore story" is basically the handbook on what not to do.
Don't trust the "helpful" stranger. Moore didn't show up with a gun. She showed up with a book deal. She told Shakespeare she wanted to protect him from people taking advantage of him. She literally used his own kindness and illiteracy against him.
Verify your advisors. If someone says they are a "financial advisor" but wants to transfer your house into their company's name—run. Moore's company, American Medical Professionals, was just a shell to siphon off Shakespeare's assets.
Privacy is your best friend. Take the 90 days Florida now offers. Use that time to build a wall of professional protection. The goal isn't just to keep the money; it's to stay alive.
Dee Dee Moore will likely spend the rest of her days in that Ocala prison, far away from the Hummers and Corvettes she bought with stolen money. For the rest of the world, her name is now synonymous with the "Lottery Curse," a cautionary tale that shows the most dangerous predators don't always look like monsters—sometimes they look like friends.
To protect yourself or your family from similar predatory behavior, you should prioritize setting up a blind trust if you ever come into significant money. Consulting with a board-certified estate attorney is the only way to ensure your assets stay yours.