Brett Favre's motion to dismiss Mississippi's welfare fraud lawsuit against him is DENIED
Brett Favre's motion to dismiss the Mississippi Department of Human Services' lawsuit against him has been denied by a circuit court judge.
The ruling comes one month after the Department (MDHS) advised the judge against dismissing Favre from the lawsuit, which centers on the largest public corruption case in state history. The scandal has unfolded over several years after $77 million in federal welfare intended for low-income Mississippi residents was squandered on pet projects by some of the state's wealthiest and well-connected citizens, including Favre.
The Green Bay Packers legend has not been charged with a crime in the case and he previously repaid $1.1 million he received for no-show speaking gigs. Since repaying that sum, however, Favre and more than three dozen other businesses and people have been sued by the MDHS.
Specifically, Favre is accused of funneling $5 million in welfare funds into a new volleyball arena at his alma mater, Southern Mississippi, where his daughter was playing the sport at the time, and another $1.7 million in public aid towards the development of an anti-concussion drug company that counted the retired quarterback among its investors.
'Obviously Brett Favre is disappointed in the court's ruling,' a Favre spokesman told DailyMail.com in response to the decision. 'His legal team is exploring their options.'
Favre's motion to dismiss the Mississippi Department of Human Services' lawsuit was denied
He first sought to dismiss the 2022 lawsuit in November, before the state revises its demands against him the following month.
Favre's attorneys then filed the motion to dismiss the amended lawsuit in February, arguing that the MDHS was trying to deflect from its own failed oversight by suing the Pro Football Hall of Famer.
'It is apparent that MDHS has sued Favre, a Mississippi and national celebrity, to try to deflect responsibility for its own egregious wrongdoing in allowing tens of millions of dollars of its public funds to be misspent — funds for which MDHS itself admits it was 'exclusively responsible,' read the filing from Favre's lawyers, which includes former Donald Trump attorney, Eric D. Herschmann.
On Monday, circuit court judge E. Faye Peterson ruled that Favre's motion for a dismissal was being denied because his argument relied on his version of facts, which 'cannot be considered by the Court' due to procedural rules.
Peterson also described the arguments put forth by Favre's attorneys as 'unpersuasive and inapplicable.'
In October, Favre claimed he's been 'unjustly smeared in the media' over his connection to the $77 million federal welfare scam in his home state of Mississippi.
'I have done nothing wrong, and it is past time to set the record straight,' Favre told Fox News in a statement, breaking months of silence on the issue.
Favre used welfare funds to help pay for a volleyball gym at Southern Miss, his alma mater
The Southern Miss product has not been charged in the case, which has already resulted in several guilty pleas, but did receive $1.1 million in welfare money for no-show speaking gigs. He has since repaid that amount, but has thus far refused to pay $228,000 interest being charged to him by the state.
As a result, Favre is among 38 individuals or organizations being sued by the state to recoup $24 million if the $77 million in federal welfare money, according to Mississippi Today.
Furthermore, recently surfaced text messages from 2017 revealed his efforts to divert $5 million in welfare to a new volleyball arena for the University of Southern Mississippi, his alma mater, where his daughter was playing the sport at the time. In one message, Favre wonders: 'Is there anyway (sic) the media can find out where [the money] came from and how much?'
But in his statement to Fox News, Favre denied knowing the source of the funding.
'No one ever told me, and I did not know, that funds designated for welfare recipients were going to the University or me,' Favre said. 'I tried to help my alma mater USM, a public Mississippi state university, raise funds for a wellness center. My goal was and always will be to improve the athletic facilities at my university.'
The lawsuit filed in May said Favre at one time was the largest individual outside investor and stockholder of Odyssey Health, a Florida-based company that was trying to develop a concussion drug. The suit said that in December 2018, Favre urged Prevacus CEO Jake VanLandingham to ask Nancy New, the owner of a Mississippi nonprofit, to use welfare grant money to invest in the company.
Shannon Sharpe (right), who co-hosts a talk show on FS1, has remained mostly silent about Favre's lawsuit, but Shad White (left) attacked the Hall of Fame quarterback earlier this month
New, her son Zachary, and John Davis, the the state's former head of the Department of Human Services, have all pleaded guilty in the case and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.
The suit also said Favre hosted a Prevacus stock sales presentation at his home in January 2019, attended by VanLandingham, John Davis, then the state's human services director, New, her son, Zach, and wrestler Ted DiBiase Jr., and that an agreement was reached to spend 'substantial' welfare grant money in Prevacus and later in its corporate affiliate PreSolMD Inc.
The company received $2.1 million over the next 10 months which had been earmarked for the state's welfare fund. Officially, the funding diverted to Prevacus was 'for the purpose of securing ''clinical trial sites'' to be located within Mississippi,' according to the lawsuit, provided to DailyMail.com.
Instead, the suit claims, the money was used by individuals to purchase stock in the company.
The state accused Favre, VanLandingham and others of agreeing, in writing, to obtain welfare funds as part of a 'sham' to conceal financial benefits to the conspirators.
In his statement to Fox News, Favre insisted that everything was handled properly on his end, including his efforts to fund Southern Miss athletics with the help of New's charity.
'State agencies provided the funds to Nancy New's charity, the Mississippi Community Education Center, which then gave the funds to the University, all with the full knowledge and approval of other State agencies, including the State-wide Institute for Higher Learning, the Governor's office and the Attorney General's office,' he said.
'I was told that the legal work to ensure that these funds could be accepted by the university was done by State attorneys and State employees.'
In some texts, Favre appeared concerned that the public would learn about the scheme
In a statement to Fox News, Mississippi state auditor Shad White said Favre's 'analysis was incorrect' because Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cannot be used to fund such projects.
'The volleyball court needed to be used to benefit the needy in Hattiesburg,' White said, referencing the Mississippi town where the Southern Miss campus is located. 'And fast-forward to today, what we know now is that the volleyball court has not been used to benefit the needy. So, this is an unallowable use of TANF funds for a few different reasons. And for those reasons, it doesn't matter that the attorney signed off on this. What matters is that it simply is not an allowable use of TANF funds, and it's our job in the auditor's office to point that out when we see it.'
Specifically, TANF funds are not permitted to be used for brick-and-mortar construction projects, such as a new volleyball court on the Southern Miss campus.
And although White admits there is no documentation showing Favre knew the funding came from the TANF fund, he was aware that the programs involved were supposed to help the poor.
In March, Favre filed defamation lawsuits against two former NFL players-turned media personalities – Fox Sports' Shannon Sharpe and YouTube host Pat McAfee – as well as White over allegations he knowingly used welfare funds on those personal projects.
YouTube host Pat McAfee was sued by Favre for defamation after claims he made about the QB
Sharpe called Favre a 'sleazeball' on his FS1 show in September while accusing the retired quarterback of knowingly stealing $1.1 million in Mississippi welfare funds in exchange for speeches that he never made. McAfee accused him of 'stealing from the poor people of Mississippi,' while White claimed Favre knew the origin of the welfare funds.
McAfee has since filed a motion to dismiss Favre's lawsuit against him.
The state recently indicted form WWE wrestler Ted DiBiase Jr. for his alleged involvement in the scheme.
The son of the legendary 'Million Dollar Man' squandered millions of dollars of welfare money that was meant for some of the neediest people in the country, federal prosecutors say.
DiBiase Jr., 40, is accused of receiving $3 million for welfare purposes that he never intended to provide, and appeared in court in Jackson, Mississippi last week.
Source: Daily Mail
