A DeSoto County school board member who served as a character witness for a former teacher and coach convicted of sexually abusing a child is suing her district attorney for defamation.
Michele Henley, who represents District 2 on the five-member board, has filed a suit against DeSoto County DA Matthew Barton, alleging that he wrongfully accused her of supporting child predators. The lawsuit follows an impassioned statement Barton made about Henley speaking positively about the character of Lindsey Whiteside, who awaits federal trial for having a sexual relationship with a minor.
Whiteside, a former basketball coach at DeSoto Central High School and youth minister at Getwell Church in Olive Branch is accused of having a sexual relationship with a female teenager between the ages of 14 and 15 from May to November of 2024. The abuse, which allegedly entailed the two exchanging more than 60,000 messages, is said to have occurred while Whiteside was serving in a planning capacity for the church’s youth trips.
She pleaded guilty to sexual battery of a child at the state level last October and was sentenced to three years of house arrest, a punishment many DeSoto County residents, including Barton, felt was too lenient. She has since been charged at the federal level and, while the trial has been delayed three times now, Whiteside faces a minimum of 10 years behind bars if convicted.
Henley’s influence was believed to have been the catalyst behind the light state sentence. The school board member referred to Whiteside as “supportive” and “helpful” when discussing the role the coach played in her daughter’s life.
“Lindsey was always encouraging, supportive, and helpful during their training sessions. She continuously gave my daughter pointers on how to improve her game while encouraging her every step of the way,” Henley wrote to a federal judge of Whiteside’s character.
“When my daughter made the team, we sent Lindsey a text to tell her. She was so excited for my daughter and, again, encouraged her to keep working hard to get better every day,” she continued. “Middle school can be hard for a young person. I am happy to say, Lindsey’s encouragement and support helped my daughter not only make the team, but have a wonderful middle school experience.”
Barton, who pursued a 30-year state sentence against Whiteside, argued that the board member used her position as an elected official to sway the judge’s view of the former youth minister and coach. Several community members and parents, including the stepfather of Whiteside’s alleged victim, echoed the DA’s sentiments publicly at an October 2025 school board meeting, accusing Henley of protecting pedophiles.
“If you are wondering why a judge would feel comfortable giving house arrest to a predator, when the victim and State were requesting the maximum sentence…then you can look no further than people like Michele Henley,” Barton said in a statement.
The board in November unanimously stripped Henley of her chairmanship in light of the public outrage, though it lacked the power to remove her as a board member. Henley has reportedly been asked repeatedly by her board peers and parents to step down voluntarily, yet she has refused to do so, and maintains that comments like Barton’s have damaged her reputation.
Henley, per her lawsuit against the DA, accused Barton of falsely labeling her a supporter of child predators when she was merely documenting her experience with Whiteside. In response to the accusations she deemed defamatory, the school board member is seeking actual and punitive damages, attorney’s fees, and court costs.