Brett Favre, a retired NFL quarterback, has claimed that a Mississippi judge has unjustly prevented his lead attorney from representing him in a state civil lawsuit aimed at recovering misspent welfare funds.
Favre has taken further action in response to the ruling issued by Hinds County Circuit Judge Faye Peterson on July 11. He has filed an appeal with the Mississippi Supreme Court, which was done through one of his attorneys on Thursday. The appeal aims to overturn the ruling.
In 2022, Favre found himself as one of the more than three dozen people, groups, and companies being sued by The Mississippi Department of Human Services in a civil lawsuit. The state auditor revealed that welfare funds, which were intended to assist some of the most impoverished residents in the country, were instead utilized for projects supported by affluent and influential individuals. This includes a university volleyball arena, which was backed by Favre.
According to Peterson’s order, Daniel Koevary, one of Favre’s attorneys based in New York, violated the rules for Mississippi civil court procedures by continuously requesting hearings for matters that were not within the jurisdiction of the court. Peterson also noted that this behavior was an attempt to create discord, which she deemed inappropriate.
In the appeal made on Thursday, Michael J. Bentley, one of Favre’s attorneys based in Mississippi, stated that Peterson’s order is causing irreparable harm.
Bentley stated that Koevary and the other non-local attorneys did not commit any wrongdoing while representing Favre. He emphasized that there was no justification for sidelining them, which would ultimately harm Favre’s rights and deprive him of the best legal services available. According to Bentley, these attorneys possess the most comprehensive institutional knowledge of the matter, and it would be unjust to impede their ability to represent Favre.
Back in 2020, Mississippi Auditor Shad White revealed that a nonprofit organization, with the approval of the Mississippi Department of Human Services, had improperly paid $1.1 million to Pro Football Hall of Fame member Brett Favre for his speaking fees. The said nonprofit organization was supposed to use the welfare money to construct a volleyball arena at the University of Southern Mississippi. Favre, who is a resident of Mississippi and an alumnus of the university where his daughter played volleyball, had agreed to spearhead the fundraising campaign for the facility.
According to a court filing made by White in February, Favre has already paid back $500,000 to the state in May 2020 and another $600,000 in October 2021. However, the filing also revealed that Favre still has an outstanding balance of $729,790 due to the accruing interest on the original amount owed.
There are currently no criminal charges being faced by Favre. The former director of the Mississippi Department of Human Services, John Davis, along with others, have admitted to misusing funds intended for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.
According to White, over $77 million of welfare funds were misused between 2016 and 2019. Some of the expenses included $160,000 for a former professional wrestler’s drug rehabilitation and thousands of dollars for airfare and accommodations for Davis, who was in charge of the Department of Human Services during that period.
