JACKSON, Miss. (AP) 鈥 A federal judge on Monday dismissed Brett Favre鈥檚 defamation lawsuit against fellow retired NFL player Shannon Sharpe, ruling that Sharpe used constitutionally protected speech on a sports broadcast when he criticized Favre's connection to a welfare misspending case in Mississippi.
U.S. District Judge Keith Starrett ruled that Sharpe, a former tight end, was using 鈥渞hetorical hyperbole鈥 in saying on air that Favre was 鈥渢aking from the underserved," that the former quarterback 鈥渟tole money from people that really needed that money鈥 and that someone would have to be a sorry person 鈥渢o steal from the lowest of the low.鈥
Favre sued Sharpe in February, saying that the fellow Pro Football Hall of Fame member made 鈥渆gregiously false鈥 statements about him on the Fox Sports talk show 鈥淪kip and Shannon: Undisputed." The case was moved to federal court in March, and Sharpe left the sports show in June.
Discussion of Mississippi welfare spending on 鈥淯ndisputed鈥 took place after extensive news coverage about allegations of Mississippi's largest public corruption case.
Mississippi Auditor Shad White has said that from 2016 to 2019, the Mississippi Department of Human Services misspent more than from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program 鈥 money that was intended to help some of the poorest people in the U.S.
Prosecutors have said the department gave money to nonprofit organizations that spent it on projects favored by wealthy and well-connected people, such as a $5 million volleyball facility at the University of Southern Mississippi, a project for which Favre agreed to raise money.
Starrett wrote in his ruling Monday that Sharpe's references to 鈥渢aking鈥 and 鈥渟tole鈥 referred to diverting TANF money 鈥渇or purposes other than helping the underprivileged.鈥
鈥淪imilarly, Sharpe鈥檚 use of the words 鈥榩eople that really needed that money,鈥 the 鈥榣owest of the low,鈥 and 鈥榯he underserved,鈥 again are examples of protected, colorful speech referring to needy families in Mississippi,鈥 the judge wrote.
鈥淗ere, no reasonable person listening to the Broadcast would think that Favre actually went into the homes of poor people and took their money 鈥 that he committed the crime of theft/larceny against any particular poor person in Mississippi,鈥 Starrett wrote.
Monday night on X, formerly known as Twitter, Sharpe noted the dismissal of the lawsuit and thanked his legal team for handling the case.
The Associated Press sent an email to Favre attorney Michael Shemper late Monday to seek comment about the dismissal of the lawsuit.
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 welfare money.
In addition to suing Sharpe, Favre filed defamation lawsuits earlier this year against White, the auditor, and sportscaster Pat McAfee, who is a former NFL punter. Favre in May, after McAfee apologized for on-air statements that Favre had been 鈥渟tealing from poor people in Mississippi.鈥 Favre's lawsuit against White is still pending.
Favre has repaid $1.1 million he received for speaking fees from a nonprofit group that spent TANF money with approval from the Mississippi Department of Human Services. White said Favre never showed up to give the speeches.
In December, the department made a and a university sports foundation, saying welfare money was improperly used to pay for a volleyball arena at Favre鈥檚 alma mater, the University of Southern Mississippi.
Favre鈥檚 daughter started playing volleyball at the university in 2017. Filings in the state鈥檚 civil lawsuit show text message exchanges between Favre and others about directing money to the volleyball facility from a nonprofit organization that had Department of Human Services contracts.
