Reporter who exposed Mississippi welfare fraud faces prison if she doesn't disclose sources

Anna Wolfe won a Pulitzer for exposing a Mississippi fraud scheme that has led to a civil lawsuit against Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre. She now faces prison, as a result of a civil lawsuit filed by former governor Phil Bryant.

Via NBCNews.com, Wolfe and her editor, Adam Ganucheau, have been ordered to produce internal documents that include the names of confidential sources. They intend to defy the order. Which could result in a contempt finding, and incarceration.

“If one of us goes to jail, we will be the first person to go to jail in the Mississippi welfare scandal,” Wolfe told NBC News. “How can I make promises to sources that I’m going to keep them confidential if this is possible?”

Bryant sued Mississippi Today for defamation, claiming the publication wrongfully accused him of criminal misconduct. Favre has filed multiple similar lawsuits, against former NFL players turned broadcasters Pat McAfee and Shannon Sharpe. (The case against McAfee was resolved, reportedly without payment.)

Mississippi Today has challenged the court order from Bryant's case to name the sources, through an appeal to the state's Supreme Court. Unless the order is overturned, Wolfe and Ganucheau face contempt charges.

Wolfe's work exposed the fact that $77 million in federal funds intended for Mississippi's poorest citizens were directed elsewhere. Favre's alleged involvement comes from $5 million that went to the University of Southern Mississippi for a new volleyball stadium, $1.1 million for promotional work, and $2.1 million to Prevacus, a drug company in which he owned stock.

Again, Favre has not been charged with any crime. And even though multiple indictments have been issued, no one has been jailed for misappropriating federal welfare money.

Really, what better way to put a bow on a welfare scandal in one of the poorest states in the country than to have the reporter who exposed it be the first one behind bars? Let's see if the Mississippi Supreme Court does the right thing — or the predictable thing.