FARGO - Susan Bala says she has no money, no car or house and her future plans are uncertain. And she's not worried.

"As long as I've got me, I'm OK," Bala said Thursday, two days after her 2005 conviction on illegal gambling charges was overturned.

Bala walked out of a minimum security prison in Pekin, Ill., on Wednesday, more than two years after a jury convicted her and her business, Racing Services Inc.

A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled there was not enough evidence to convict Bala, 52, of Fargo, and Racing Services, of illegal gambling charges.

Bala and RSI, the company she founded as North Dakota's first simulcast racing service, were convicted on 12 felony counts in what authorities said was largest illegal gambling case in North Dakota history. Bala was sentenced to 27 months in prison and she and RSI were ordered to forfeit more than $99 million, an order that was overturned by the appeals court.

Bala said Thursday that when she found out she was being released from prison, she fell down on her knees.

"I wanted to hug the floor," she said.

She said she feels no animosity toward prosecutors or people who testified against her.

"There's a point where you just can't afford to have a negative thought," she said.

She walked out of prison wearing sweat pants and a long trenchcoat with some spending money tucked into her sock. "I was the happiest person around," she said.

Bala said she viewed her time in prison as a "spiritual retreat and sabbatical," and renewed her interest in drawing. She said she drew portraits for other inmates of their loved ones and friends, and found it therapeutic.

"It transported me to another realm," she said. "Before I knew it, I would be working 12 hours a day on drawings."

U.S Attorney Drew Wrigley said he stands behind the prosecution of Bala and is considering asking the full appeals court to review its decision.