About 45 million Americans say they plan to bet on this year’s March Madness college basketball championship tournament, and an increasing percentage will do it in a way that doesn’t include filling out brackets.

States around the country are realizing that future of sports betting — and tax money to be made from it — is online.

A man makes a sports bet at the Borgata casino in Atlantic City NJ on Friday March 19, 2021, the first full day of the NCAA March Madness tournament. Last year, it was March sadness as the NCAA college basketball tournament got canceled days before it was supposed to start, due to the coronavirus. But that was last March, just before the coronavirus wiped out the March Madness tournament — and the boatloads of money that would have been bet on it. Spread out over several weeks, the NCAA tournament is collectively the biggest sports betting event of the year. Kevin Hennessy, a spokesperson for FanDuel, said legal sports betting “continues to surpass our expectations.” His company paid out more than $17 million to customers on a March Madness betting promotion Thursday night.

This booking photo provided by the Hunt County (Texas) Sheriff's Office shows Wolfe City Police Officer Shaun Lucas on Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. (Hunt County Sheriff's Office via AP)DALLAS – A white police officer charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Black man in a small East Texas city was fired Thursday. A statement from Wolfe City said Officer Shaun Lucas, 22, was fired for “his egregious violation” of city and police department policy. He said witnesses have said Price was “too far away to even be considered as reaching for the” stun gun. When Lucas produced a stun gun, Price began to walk away.

DETROIT – Amid anger over police brutality nationwide, a Detroit activist is using his energy to come up with solutions to end it. The activist works with police departments all throughout the Detroit area, but he says the latest police killing in Texas has him pushing even harder for police reform. Related: Ex-officer charged in George Floyd’s death freed on $1M bondThe activist says enough is enough and that more should be done to end this violence. Detroit police officers also use body cameras while on the job. A spokesperson with the Detroit Police Department said that counseling services are available to officers, but they were not sure how often officers use those services.

This booking photo provided by the Hunt County (Texas) Sheriff's Office shows Wolfe City Police Officer Shaun Lucas on Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. According to the affidavit, written by a Texas Ranger, the entire interaction between the two on Oct. 3 was captured on a body camera. The affidavit said that Lucas then fired four times, striking Price in the upper torso. “I have as many white friends as I do Black friends," said Coleman, who is Black. “In fact I probably have more white friends than Black because the disparity of the population is that great."

This booking photo provided by the Hunt County (Texas) Sheriff's Office shows Wolfe City Police Officer Shaun Lucas on Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. (Hunt County Sheriff's Office via AP)WOLFE CITY, Texas – A white police officer has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting of a Black man following a reported disturbance at a convenience store in a small East Texas town, authorities said. Following the shooting Saturday night in Wolfe City, city officials only confirmed that an officer-involved shooting had occurred and the officer had been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation by the Texas Rangers. According to the Texas Rangers’ statement, Lucas responded to a disturbance call on Saturday night following a report of a possible fight. Mr. Price resisted the effects of the (stun gun) and attempted to take it away from Officer Lucas," Snider said.