1 month ago
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President Donald Trump’s decision this week to pardon reality show stars Todd and Julie Chrisley of fraud and tax evasion brought excitement and relief to their adult children, including daughter Savannah Chrisley, who had lobbied for their release via social media, a podcast and a Republican National Convention speech.
The president issued full pardons on Wednesday for the couple, whose show “Chrisley Knows Best” followed the lavish lifestyle of real estate mogul Todd Chrisley and his family. The couple were convicted in 2022 of defrauding banks of tens of millions of dollars and of hiding earnings from tax authorities.
Prosecutors said the crimes helped boost the Chrisleys’ extravagant, expensive lifestyle that they displayed on their show, including luxury cars and travel. Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison, while Julie Chrisley was sentenced to seven years. They were also ordered to pay $17.8 million in restitution.
“It’s a terrible thing, but it’s a great thing, because your parents are going to be free and clean, and I hope we can do it by tomorrow. Is that OK? We’ll try getting it done tomorrow,” Trump said Tuesday in a phone call with their daughter. “I don’t know them, but give them my regards and wish them a good life.”
Dan Anderson via Associated Press
The 27-year-old has been advocating on behalf of her parents for the past few years, relying on social media as well as her “Unlocked” podcast to bring awareness to their imprisonment and to voice support for Trump. She described her parents as victims of political persecution while speaking at last year’s Republican National Convention and discussed the possibility of a presidential pardon while having lunch at the White House in February.
“Let me make one thing crystal clear: I didn’t have to sell my soul – I stood on truth, persistence and God’s favor,” she said in a Wednesday statement. “I fought a broken, weaponized system with everything I had ... and I won.”
The couple’s son, 28-year-old Chase Chrisley, told The New York Post that he’s “grateful to God and extremely grateful to President Trump and his entire administration.” Kyle Chrisley, Todd’s estranged son from his first marriage, told E! News that he was “ecstatic” to hear about the pardons.
“Truly,” the 33-year-old said. “I just found out a little bit ago and I still just can’t believe it.”
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Trump is also a failed businessman with his own criminal history. A jury found him guilty last year on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree in relation to his hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. He was charged in 2023 with taking classified documents from the White House and keeping them in Mar-a-Lago, though a Trump-appointed judge dismissed the case last year. Trump also faced charges last year over efforts to subvert the 2020 election and the peaceful transfer of power, but special counsel Jack Smith dropped the case.
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