After we final checked in with Brett Favre, he was trying to fend off allegations that he knowingly performed a job in diverting funds from Mississippi’s welfare fund to his pet challenge, a volleyball court docket at his alma mater the place (shock!) his daughter performed on the workforce. Along with (possibly) paying again his misbegotten good points — we’ll get to that in a minute — Favre has apparently determined the easiest way to woo the general public again to his aspect is to (checks notes) sue sports activities commentators Pat McAfee and Shannon Sharpe, together with Mississippi Auditor Shad White, for defamation. The fits in opposition to McAfee and Sharpe had been settled and dismissed, respectively, although Favre is interesting the dismissal of his swimsuit in opposition to Sharpe. To this point, Favre has denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with a criminal offense.
Now, White has hit again at Favre, filing a counterclaim to Favre’s defamation swimsuit alleging that the HOF quarterback nonetheless owes that state almost three quarters of one million {dollars}, and asking a court docket to order Favre to pay it again. On Monday, White filed paperwork responding to Favre’s claims of defamation, and in addition set forth his personal declare that Favre continues to owe Mississippi greater than $430,000 in principal and almost $300,000 in curiosity accrued for the reason that state first demanded compensation from the quarterback.
There isn’t a lot we didn’t know in White’s filings, however there are some fairly damning allegations, like “Favre realized that funneling the restricted [welfare] funds to the volleyball constructing building challenge by way of him may be a strategy to “clear up the [restrictions on the money being spent on a brick and mortar structure] drawback.” The swimsuit additional alleges, “As of July 31, 2017, Favre knew that the restricted funds had been funds meant to assist the poor and to not assemble volleyball buildings.” White additionally alleges that “Favre demanded secrecy . . . to maintain the transfers [of welfare funds] to him secret.” Favre allegedly wrote to 1 MI state official, “So if we hold confidential the place the cash got here from in addition to the quantity I believe that is gonna work.”
Not an awesome look, Brett.
It doesn’t seem that there’s a complete lot Favre can refute right here, as White liberally consists of Favre’s textual content messages (full with odd sentence construction and inappropriately positioned emojis) and communications with state officers all through his grievance. On the coronary heart of the matter, Favre claims that he has repaid the State of Mississippi the $1.1 million in funds — virtually 4 p.c of whole grant funds which had been supposed to learn poor kids and their households, based on the counterclaim. However White claims that, in Might of 2020, Favre “admitted that he was personally accountable” and promised to repay Mississippi “within the coming months.” Primarily based on Favre’s statements, White alleges that the state forbore on assortment efforts, however the two sides at the moment are at an deadlock, with Favre refusing to pay any extra funds, whereas White cites state regulation that he claims require him to cost curiosity from the dates the funds had been “improperly withheld.”
The litigation of the case will undoubtedly hinge on figuring out what date the funds had been “improperly withheld” from, and each side will submit their very own math about how a lot, if something, Favre nonetheless owes the State. However the greatest takeaway from studying the authorized paperwork is that Favre nonetheless doesn’t seem to consider he did something mistaken and, moderately than doing his greatest to make the residents of Mississippi complete, he’s as a substitute suing anybody who accuses him of “stealing” welfare funds. Favre has additionally refused to repay any extra funds to the state, prompting White to comment, “It boggles the thoughts that Mr. Favre may think about he’s entitled to the equal of an interest-free mortgage of $1.1 million in taxpayer cash, particularly cash meant for the advantage of the poor.” Certainly. It’s one factor to be Mississippi’s favourite NFL son (although, that ought to truly be Walter Payton). It’s fairly one other to (allegedly) get state officers to pay on your child’s volleyball facility with cash meant for poor children.
In response to a number of websites, Favre’s web price in 2023 is believed to be around $100 million dollars. In as we speak’s world of billionaire sports activities homeowners, that’s not an enormous sum, however for the remainder of us, it’s undoubtedly Scrooge-McDuck-swimming-in-piles-of-gold-coins cash. Greater than sufficient cash to, say, fund a paltry $5 million volleyball facility in Southern Mississippi. That was, apparently, what Favre initially meant to do — fund the entire project himself. Why Favre modified his thoughts we might by no means know, however his actions thus far, refusing to pay curiosity on funds that ought to have gone to fund Mississippi’s poorest residents, and stomping his ft and sending his lawyer after anybody who utters a harsh phrase about him, doesn’t proof a lot contrition on Favre’s half. As an alternative of merely protecting his head down and instantly repaying the state upon studying the true intention for the funds he acquired, which is what any respectable particular person would do upon studying they took half in diverting welfare funds for a school sports activities area. As an alternative, Favre is doubtlessly going to wind up paying a fortune in authorized charges (thus far, he hasn’t recovered any cash in his three defamation fits) and nonetheless owe the state almost $750,000 in principal and curiosity.
As for Favre’s popularity? That’s lengthy gone.