Sorry, the penalty DOES apply to a roommate if the other criteria are met.
http://www.efile.com/qualifying-relative-child-friend-parent-dependent-exemption-test/
“The person must either have lived with you for the entire year as a member of the household (a person who is not actually related to you may meet the requirements in this way), or be related to you... “
IRS Bulletin 501 is the one about dependents.
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p501/ar02.html
Still haven’t seen any mention of this in the news.
That seems incredible, doesn’t it?
But the fact would never be known to the IRS if the benefactor doesn’t claim the recipient as an exemption.
And, in this case, the support only went on for four months.
And I think the recipient’s income for the year has to be below a certain level?