According to the Associated Press, former NFL quarterback Brett Favre filed lawsuits in Mississippi on Thursday, accusing the state auditor and two prominent sportscasters of defaming him in discussions about the mismanagement of welfare funds meant to help some of the most vulnerable citizens in one of the country’s poorest states.
Auditor Shad White “conducted an outrageous media campaign of malicious and false accusations against Brett Favre—the Hall of Fame quarterback and native son of Mississippi—in a brazen attempt to leverage the media attention produced by Favre’s celebrity to further his own political career,” according to the lawsuit. Former NFL player Shannon Sharpe has filed a separate lawsuit.
Sharpe allegedly made “egregiously untrue” accusations about Favre on the Fox Sports talk show Skip and Shannon. Favre unquestionably “stole money from those who actually needed money,” among other things.
In a separate lawsuit against retired NFL player Pat McAfee, Favre claimed that McAfee had made “outrageous falsehoods” about him, including calling him a “thief” who was “taking from underprivileged people in Mississippi.”
In the lawsuit he filed against the auditor on Thursday, Favre claims that White has been “shamelessly and falsely attacking Favre’s good name” in order to draw attention to himself. White is accused of doing this through appearances on CNN and HBO television programs, a well-known ESPN podcast, as well as interviews with print and online media. If White hadn’t been criticizing Favre, none of these major media sites would have given him the slightest attention.”
“Everything Auditor White has said about this issue is true and is supported by years of audit work by the experts at the Office of the State Auditor,” said Fletcher Freeman, a spokesperson for White.
It’s strange that Mr. Favre wants a trial to address that issue.” Despite paying back some of the money requested by the auditor’s office, Favre has labeled White and the auditor’s staff liars, according to Freeman. According to Freeman, he has also insisted that the auditors are lying despite ample documentation demonstrating that he benefited from improperly spent money. “He’d be better off paying back the full amount of assistance cash he owes the state rather than engaging New York litigators to prosecute this case.
