Mississippi

Favre tries to expand his defamation lawsuit against Mississippi auditor over welfare spending

Published

1 year ago

September 30, 2024

Favre tries to expand his defamation lawsuit against Mississippi auditor over welfare spending

JACKSON, Miss. — Retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre is trying to expand his defamation lawsuit against Mississippi Auditor Shad White to include a book White wrote about the misspending of welfare money that was supposed to help some of the poorest people in the U.S.

White’s book, “Mississippi Swindle: Brett Favre and the Welfare Scandal that Shocked America,” was published in August. Favre’s attorneys wrote in court papers Friday that the title and the contents are defamatory.

“The book itself falsely states, among other things, that Favre had been ‘taking money he knew should go to people in ‘shelters,’’ and had been ‘trying to hide that fact from the media and the public,’ and also accuses Favre of committing the felony of money laundering,” Favre’s attorneys wrote.

White has said he is paying his own legal bills in the defamation case.

“Favre’s frivolous lawsuit has cost my family and me tens of thousands of dollars personally, but I will not back down from telling the truth,” White said in a text message to The Associated Press, responding to the court filing. “Favre will lose this case, just as he has the others.”

Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch stopped representing White in the defamation lawsuit early this year after the announcement that White, a fellow Republican, was writing a book about the sprawling welfare case. White wrote that Fitch delayed an effort to recover misspent money and then recommended that the state use private attorneys for the job.

Favre is not facing criminal charges, but he is among more than three dozen people or businesses the state is suing to try to recover misspent money through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.

Mississippi Auditor Shad White, a Republican, speaks at a Mississippi Economic Council event in Jackson, Miss., Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. Credit: AP/Rogelio V. Solis

White said in 2020 that Favre received speaking fees from a nonprofit organization that spent welfare funds with approval from the Mississippi Department of Human Services, but that Favre never showed up to give the speeches. The money was to go toward a volleyball arena at the University of Southern Mississippi. Favre agreed to lead fundraising efforts for the facility at his alma mater, where his daughter started playing on the volleyball team in 2017.

Favre has repaid $1.1 million, but White has said the Pro Football Hall of Fame member still owes about $730,000 because interest caused growth in the original amount he owed.

Favre filed defamation lawsuits in February 2023 against White and two former NFL players who became sports broadcasters, Shannon Sharpe and Pat McAfee, over comments each had made about him and welfare misspending.

A federal appeals court on Sept. 16 refused to revive Favre’s lawsuit against Sharpe, which a district court judge had dismissed.

In May 2023, Favre dropped his lawsuit against McAfee after McAfee apologized for saying Favre had been “stealing from poor people in Mississippi.”

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Mississippi

Mississippi First Congressional District Primary 2026: Live Election Results, Buck vs. Johnson

Published

1 hour ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi First Congressional District Primary 2026: Live Election Results, Buck vs. Johnson

Source: Election results are from The Associated Press.

By The New York Times election results team: Michael Andre, Neil Berg, Matthew Bloch, Lily Boyce, Irineo Cabreros, Nico Chilla, Nate Cohn, Annie Daniel, Saurabh Datar, Andrew Fischer, Martín González Gómez, Jasmine C. Lee, Alex Lemonides, Zach Levitt, Ilana Marcus, Alicia Parlapiano, Dan Simmons-Ritchie, Caroline Soler, Charlie Smart, Jonah Smith and Christine Zhang.

Additional contributions by Sarah Cahalan, Amanda Cordero, Patrick Hays, Jacob Meschke and Jessica White.

Edited by Wilson Andrews, Lindsey Rogers Cook, William P. Davis, Kenan Davis, Amy Hughes, Ben Koski and Allison McCartney.

Source: Election results are from The Associated Press.

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Mississippi

Mississippi Top Reads for week of March 15, 2026

Published

13 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

Mississippi Top Reads for week of March 15, 2026

Staff Reports
| Special to the Mississippi Clarion Ledger

Sunday, March 15, 2026

1. (tie) “The Irish Goodbye,” Beth Ann Fennelly, Norton; and “Vigil,” George Saunders, Random House

2. “Theo of Golden,” Allen Levi, Atria Books

3. “The Widow,” John Grisham, Doubleday

4. “The Correspondent,” Virginia Evans, Random House

5. “When It’s Darkness on the Delta,” W. Ralph Eubanks, Beacon Press

6. “Eradication,” Jonathan Miles, Doubleday

7. “Neptune’s Fortune,” Julian Sancton, Random House

8. “The Dean,” Sparky Reardon, The Nautilus Publishing Company

9. “Kin,” Tayari Jones, Random House

10. “Brawler,” Lauren Groff, Riverhead

Children and young adults

1. “The Bear and the Hair and the Fair,” Em Lynas, Little Brown

2. “The Hybrid Prince,” Tui T. Sutherland, Scholastic Press

3. “One Mississippi,” Steve Azar,Sarah Frances Hardy (Illustrator), The Nautilus Publishing

4. “If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone,” Gideon Sterer, HarperCollins

5. (tie) “Fancy Nancy: Besties for Eternity,” Jane O’Connor and Robin Preiss Glasser (Illustrator), HarperCollins; and “The Dark is For,” Jane Kohuth, Simon and Schuster

Adult events (Sunday, March 15–Saturday, March 21)

Amy McDowell in conversation with Jodi Skipper for “Whispers in the Pews,” 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Off Square Books, 129 Courthouse Square, Oxford, 662-236-2262

Tayari Jones on Thacker Mountain Radio Hour for “Kin,” 6 p.m. Thursday, Off Square Books, 129 Courthouse Square, Oxford, 662-236-2262

Children’s events (Sunday, March 15–Saturday, March 21)

No Cap Book Club (kids 10-13) will be reading “A Kid’s Book About…,” 6:00 p.m. Tuesday, Square Books Jr., 111 Courthouse Square, Oxford, 662-236-2207

Storytime, “Clifford: Dream Big,” 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, Square Books Jr., 111 Courthouse Square, Oxford, 662-236-2207

Chapter Captains Book Club (kids 6-9) will be reading “Princess in Black: Bathtime Battle,” 6:00 p.m. Thursday, Square Books Jr., 111 Courthouse Square, Oxford, 662-236-2207

Storytime, “What a Small Cat Needs,” 10:00 a.m. Saturday, Square Books Jr., 111 Courthouse Square, Oxford, 662-236-2207

Story Time, “Very Hungry Caterpillar” Day! 10 a.m. Saturday, Lemuria Books, 202 Banner Hall, 4465 I-55 North, Jackson, 601-366-7619

— Sales and/or Events Reported by Lemuria Books (Jackson); Lorelei Books (Vicksburg); Square Books (Oxford).

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Mississippi

Who finished No. 1 in Mississippi high school basketball Super 25 girls rankings?

Published

1 day ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Who finished No. 1 in Mississippi high school basketball Super 25 girls rankings?

The Mississippi girls high school basketball 2025-26 season has ended.

The MHSAA championships concluded March 7 at Mississippi Coliseum, while the MAIS overall tournament ended two weeks ago. Starkville finished as the No. 1 team in the final Clarion Ledger Mississippi high school girls basketball Super 25 rankings.

Two teams enter the Super 25 final rankings as Louisville joins from MHSAA 4A and East Rankin Academy in MAIS 4A.

Mississippi high school girls basketball Super 25 rankings

1. Starkville (31-3)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 1. Final game: Starkville 39, Harrison Central 22 in MHSAA 7A championship.

2. Laurel (31-2)

MHSAA Class 5A. Previous ranking: 3. Final game: Laurel 52, Holmes County Central 26 in MHSAA 5A championship.

3. Biloxi (30-2)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 2. Final game: Starkville 41, Biloxi 34 in MHSAA 7A semifinals.

4. Tishomingo County (28-2)

MHSAA Class 4A. Previous ranking: 4. Final game: Tishomingo County 64, Louisville 49 in MHSAA 4A championship.

5. Olive Branch (23-7)

MHSAA Class 6A. Previous ranking: 8. Final game: Olive Branch 58, Neshoba Central 57 in MHSAA 6A championship.

6. Harrison Central (26-7)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 7. Final game: Starkville 39, Harrison Central 22 in MHSAA 7A championship.

7. Neshoba Central (26-7)

MHSAA Class 6A. Previous ranking: 5. Final game: Olive Branch 58, Neshoba Central 57 in MHSAA 6A championship.

8. Madison Central (25-7)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 6. Final game: Harrison Central 56, Madison Central 40 in MHSAA 7A semifinals.

9. Booneville (24-4)

MHSAA Class 3A. Previous ranking: 9. Final game: Booneville 54, Belmont 31 in MHSAA 3A championship.

10. Canton (26-5)

MHSAA Class 6A. Previous ranking: 10. Final game: Olive Branch 47, Canton 41 in MHSAA 6A quarterfinals.

11. Ingomar (33-2)

MHSAA Class 1A. Previous ranking: 12. Final game: Ingomar 65, Okolona 48 in MHSAA 1A championship.

12. Northwest Rankin (24-8)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 13. Final game: Harrison Central 45, Northwest Rankin 42 in MHSAA 7A quarterfinals.

13. Madison-Ridgeland Academy (36-5)

MAIS Class 4A. Previous ranking: 14. Final game: MRA 37, Simpson Academy 25 in MAIS Overall championship.

14. Pontotoc (23-9)

MHSAA Class 5A. Previous ranking: 16. Final game: Laurel 63, Pontotoc 38 in MHSAA 5A semifinals.

15. Brandon (23-8)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 17. Final game: Biloxi 55, Brandon 39 in MHSAA 7A quarterfinals.

16. Louisville (22-8)

MHSAA Class 6A. Previous ranking: Not ranked. Final game: Tishomingo County 64, Louisville 49 in MHSAA 4A championship.

17. Morton (27-3)

MHSAA Class 4A. Previous ranking: 11. Final game: Tishomingo County 65, Morton 40 in MHSAA 4A semifinals.

18. Choctaw Central (24-6)

MHSAA Class 4A. Previous ranking: 15. Final game: Morton 48, Choctaw Central 36 in MHSAA 4A quarterfinals.

19. Holmes County Central (22-12)

MHSAA Class 5A. Previous ranking: 23. Final game: Laurel 52, Holmes County Central 26 in MHSAA 5A championship.

20. Brookhaven (25-6)

MHSAA Class 5A. Previous ranking: 18. Final game: Holmes County Central 61, Brookhaven 55 in MHSAA 5A semifinals.

21. Belmont (24-7)

MHSAA Class 3A. Previous ranking: 19. Final game: Booneville 54, Belmont 31 in MHSAA 3A championship.

22. Simpson Academy (31-6)

MAIS Class 4A. Previous ranking: 21. Final game: MRA 37, Simpson Academy 25 in MAIS Overall championship.

23. West Harrison (24-5)

MHSAA Class 7A. Previous ranking: 22. Final game: Brandon 54, West Harrison 45 in MHSAA 7A first round.

24. East Union (30-2)

MHSAA Class 2A. Previous ranking: 24. Final game: East Union 57, New Site 38 in MHSAA 2A championship.

25. East Rankin Academy (31-7)

MAIS Class 4A. Previous ranking: Not ranked. Final game: MRA 57, East Rankin Academy 43 in MAIS Overall semifinals.

Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.

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