Brett Favre is attempting to have the Mississippi Department of Human Services complaint filed against himself and Favre Enterprises dismissed.
“[MDHS]’s lawsuit is nothing more than a baseless attempt to blame Brett Favre for its own failure to oversee the welfare funds placed in its trust,” Favre’s lawyer, Eric Herschmann, told ESPN.
“Mr. Favre never had any control over how Mississippi spent its welfare funds. He never made any misrepresentations to anyone.”
The complaint filed against Favre and Favre Enterprises stems from an audit of $77 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds that were designated for marginalized communities across Mississippi. However, Favre received $1.1 million in TANF funds for speeches that he allegedly never gave. In addition, Prevacus, a company developing a concussion drug in which Favre is the top stockholder, received TANF funds. Not to be forgotten, an athletic foundation at the school Favre’s daughter attends received $5 million in state funds to build a new volleyball stadium.
“It’s ludicrous to say that Mr. Favre has been singled out in any way. And as far as our office is concerned, Mr. Favre remains liable for $228,000 in interest for nonperformance of the contract in question,” the office of Mississippi auditor Shad White told ESPN.
The funds that were used to build a volleyball stadium were not highlighted in the legal complaint against Favre. Therefore, he has been deemed legally responsible for the alleged misuse of those funds. As it pertains to the funds distributed to Prevacus and his speaking engagements, Favre claims that he has repaid those funds. However, the state is seeking to obtain the amount they say he owes in interest.
“As the State Auditor has acknowledged, Mr. Favre never knew welfare funds were involved in the first place. Once he found out, he returned all of the funds he received — six months before MDHS filed its lawsuit,” Herschmann told ESPN.
“As the State Auditor also has acknowledged, Mr. Favre’s conduct deserves applause, not a frivolous lawsuit. We believe that after the Court reviews our motion, this case will be dismissed.”
Despite the motion filed, the state remains committed to the complaint against Favre and Favre enterprises.
“At this point, MDHS doesn’t want to try this case in the media,” an MDHS spokesperson told ESPN.
“We believe that merits of the case will stand on their own. We will leave that to a court to decide.”
