A judge has dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed by former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant against a newspaper for its coverage of the welfare-fraud scandal linked to Brett Favre. ESPN reported Friday that Madison County Circuit Court Judge Bradley Mills dismissed Bryant’s lawsuit against Mississippi Today. This suit was initiated two years ago following the publication of a five-part series, “The Backchannel,” which unveiled a $77 million welfare fraud scandal involving Bryant.
A civil suit filed by the Mississippi Department of Human Services in 2022 accused Favre of improperly receiving funds from the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families as part of the state’s largest public embezzlement scandal. Favre, who has not been charged with any crime, denies knowing that the funds were meant for welfare. The report detailed how Bryant diverted over $5 million of those funds to Favre’s alma mater, Southern Miss, for a new volleyball facility. Anna Wolfe, the reporter covering the story, won a Pulitzer Prize for her efforts. Mississippi Today attorney Lee Crain commented that Wolfe’s reporting was “exactly the type of reporting the First Amendment was intended to protect,” and added that the ruling “ends once and for all Governor Bryant’s unconstitutional crusade against Mississippi’s free press.”
However, Bryant’s attorney, Billy Quinn, stated that the case “will likely end up on appeal before the Mississippi Supreme Court. … This matter is far from over. Governor Bryant remains confident in the legal basis and righteousness of his case.” This ruling marks the second significant legal setback for Bryant in the last two weeks; on March 25, a defamation case he filed against Sports Illustrated reporter Michael Rosenberg regarding the same scandal was dismissed by a federal judge.
Favre has also engaged in legal battles, filing defamation suits against Pat McAfee and Shannon Sharpe for their comments in 2023. A judge dismissed the case against Sharpe, while Favre dropped the lawsuit against McAfee.
Mississippi Today celebrated its legal victory in a story Friday titled “A Win for Press Freedom.” The story stated, “For the past 22 months, we’ve vigorously defended our Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting and our characterizations of Bryant’s role in the Mississippi welfare scandal. We are grateful today that the court, after careful deliberation, dismissed the case. The reporting speaks for itself. The truth speaks for itself.”