UPDATE
May 28, 2025 1:30 AM CDT
President Trump on Tuesday pardoned Julie and Todd Chrisley of reality TV fame, as he'd promised to do, People reports. "My parents get to start their lives over!" their daughter Savannah posted on Instagram Live. "My phone is going bananas right now, but President Trump gave them a full, unconditional pardon and for that, I am forever grateful. Thank you, President Trump." Trump said the Chrisleys were "given a pretty harsh treatment, based on what I'm hearing."
May 27, 2025 5:48 PM CDT
The White House said Tuesday that President Trump is set to pardon reality TV stars Julie and Todd Chrisley, the couple famous for Chrisley Knows Best, which followed their tightly knit family and extravagant lifestyle. A jury in 2022 found them guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans. The Chrisleys were also found guilty of tax evasion. In a social media post Tuesday, the White House said Trump called the Chrisley family and said "he will be granting full pardons," adding, "Trump Knows Best!"
The Chrisleys were found guilty of tax evasion by hiding their earnings while showcasing an extravagant lifestyle that prosecutors said included luxury cars, designer clothes, real estate, and travel, the AP reports. Prosecutors said Todd Chrisley filed for bankruptcy, walking away from more than $20 million in unpaid loans. Julie Chrisley was sentenced to seven years in federal prison, and Todd Chrisley got 12 years behind bars. The couple was also ordered to pay $17.8 million in restitution. According to the Bureau of Prisons, Todd Chrisley, 57, is at FPC Pensacola, with his release date listed as July 4, 2032. Julie Chrisley, 52, is at FMC Lexington. Her release date is listed as August 1, 2028.
story continues below
"It's a great thing because your parents are going to be free and clean and I hope we can do it by tomorrow." Trump told Savannah Chrisley, one of the couple's daughters, per USA Today. "I don't know them, but give them my regards and wish them a good life." A three-judge panel of the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals last summer upheld the Chrisleys' convictions but found a legal error in how the trial judge had calculated Julie Chrisley's sentence by holding her accountable for the entire bank fraud scheme. The appellate panel sent her case back to the lower court for resentencing. A federal judge rejected her appeal for a lower sentence and resentenced her to seven years in September, Rolling Stone reports. (More President Trump stories.)