Brett Favre to Testify in Mississippi Welfare Fraud Case Over Southern Miss Funds | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

Lawyers representing the Mississippi Department of Human Services will take sworn testimony from Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre as part of the organization's ongoing civil lawsuit to recover at least $77 million in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds.

A.J. Perez of Front Office Sports first broke the news, which was revealed in a deposition notice filed in the circuit court of Hinds County, Mississippi (First Judicial District).

Favre will begin giving the testimony on Oct. 26 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, where he lives. The testimony will continue day-to-day until completed.

Per Ashton Pittman of the Mississippi Free Press, it's not certain when Favre's testimony will be made public:

"On Sept. 22, the State moved for the court to adopt a protective order that would designate all deposition testimony as 'Confidential or Highly Confidential' and conceal it from the media and public for 30 days, meaning Favre's testimony could remain secret until at least late November or early December depending on its completion date."

According to Anthony Olivieri of ESPN.com, a state audit revealed that funds met for families in need instead went to wealthy Mississippi residents.

There are two primary concerns regarding Favre, who has not been criminally charged in this case.

First, court filings claim Favre was behind the Southern Miss Athletic Foundation receiving over $5 million in TANF funds to use toward a new volleyball facility built in 2019. Favre's daughter, Breleigh, played on the volleyball team from 2019-2022.

Ashton Pittman and William Pittman of the Mississippi Free Press provided a thorough timeline of events surrounding the matter. In sum, though, court filings show a host of text messages in which Favre is seeking funds via ex-MDHS Director John Davis and nonprofit leader Nancy New (both of whom have been indicted) for a new facility.

"If you were to pay me is there anyway (sic) the media can find out where it came from and how much?" Favre asked New, who proposed directing funds to Southern Miss for the facility, in an Aug. 2017 text.

According to Olivieri, a company developing a concussion drug (Prevacus) where Favre served as a "top outside investor and stockholder" also got money from TANF.

Per the Mississippi Free Press, Favre claims he does not know the origin of the money directed toward him or in his interest. In addition, none of the the text messages reveal that Favre knew TANF money was involved in this case.

Favre was also paid $1.1 million in TANF funds for speaking appearances that never took place. The quarterback eventually gave that money back, but a state auditor has demanded he pay $228,000 in interest as well.

Favre was named as one of 38 original defendants in the case in May 2022. That number has since risen to 47 as of May 2023, per Olivieri.