Latest news with #KimptonAertsonHotel
Irish Daily Star
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Star
Todd Chrisley hits out CNN as he thanks Trump while breaking silence after pardon
Todd Chrisley and his daughter, Savannah Chrisley , spoke at a press conference on Friday, May 30. The reality television star and his wife, Julie Chrisley, were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud Atlanta-area banks of more than $30 million by submitting false documents and tax evasion . Todd was sentenced to 12 years while Julie got seven, and the couple was ordered to pay $17.8 million in restitution. However, Donald Trump pardoned the couple this week. Trump broke the news to Savannah with a call from the oval office telling her he "freed" her parents from incarceration. In a video posted to the White House's account on X, formally known as Twitter, Trump is seen telling Savannah over the phone, "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." The couple were then released the next day. Read More Related Articles Multi-millionaire music superstar Enya lives alone in castle with her cats Read More Related Articles CNN delivers brutal blow to President Donald Trump - 'Nobody voted for that' After Todd and Julie's release, Todd and Savannah held a press conference at the Kimpton Aertson Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. "We woke up today and they're still at home its such a dream," Savannah said. "I'm so grateful, obviously, to the administration, President Trump." Savannah lobbied for her parents Julie and Todd's freedom (Image: NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images) She added that Trump was not in the business of giving "favors," and felt grateful as they hope to move on to reforming the prison system. Todd then took the podium, stating, "I want to thank first and foremost my lord and savior because that got me through it," before moving on to thank Trump. Todd then thanked his daughter for continuously fighting for his pardon, telling her, "I will always be grateful to you from the bottom of my heart." He added that his experience in prison included hearing "horrific stories" about what was going on and wrongful convictions. "I will continue to expose the injustices that happen there and the Bureau of Prisons," he continued. "We are blessed to be coming back to television we have a much bigger story to tell now." The press conference then turned into a Q&A session, where members of the press asked questions to the father and daughter. One reporter asked if Todd had any remorse, to which he cheekily responded, "You must be CNN." He then added, "I would have remorse if it was something that I did." For all the latest news straight to your inbox, sign up for our FREE newsletters here . For the latest local news and features on Irish America, visit our homepage here .
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Todd Chrisley speaks out for first time since Trump's pardon
Todd Chrisley addressed reporters on Friday in his first comments since President Donald Trump pardoned the formerly jailed reality TV star and his wife, Julie Chrisley, and released them from federal prison. Speaking at a press conference at the Kimpton Aertson Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee, Todd maintained his innocence. "Whether you believe it or not — because I was you at some point — even though this pardon has happened, I still was convicted of something that I did not do," Todd said. "It could be you. It could be you, it could be any of you. And somewhere in this room, someone has had a family member that has been affected by the system." "I understand the shame that's around it, but I refuse to feed into that because shame is like a cancer that just spreads and I have no shame," he added. Trump issued pardons to Todd and Julie on Wednesday. The pair, known for their roles on the reality TV show 'Chrisley Knows Best,' were convicted in 2022 of tax evasion and defrauding banks to obtain personal loans worth more than $36 million and fund a lavish lifestyle. Prosecutors said that the Chrisleys submitted false bank statements, audit reports and personal financial statements to Georgia community banks to obtain the loans. They were found guilty by an Atlanta jury in 2022 and convicted of fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Todd was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison and Julie was sentenced to seven years. Julie was not at the press conference on Friday, but was seen the day before, leaving a butcher shop in Nashville, Tennessee. Todd opened the press conference thanking God, Trump and Trump's 'pardon czar,' Alice Johnson, who was pardoned several years ago during the first Trump administration. He also thanked one of his daughters, Savannah Chrisley, who played a pivotal role in petitioning for the pardons and was at Friday's press conference. Savannah — who spoke at the Republican National Convention — took meetings with members of Trump's staff before and after the president was re-inaugurated to advocate for her parents to be released. Savannah said she was misunderstood when critics claimed they were pardoned because of their celebrity status. "I fought hard, and I was exhausted, and I begged for meetings. There was nothing — I was never too good to ask," she said. "And that's the thing — people think 'oh, you're a celebrity, you're white, you have money' that we got an upper hand and we didn't." When a reporter asked him if he had any remorse and pointed to his wife's apology for her crimes in court last year, Todd pushed back. "You're placed in a position as a defendant to either bow down and kiss the ass of the Department of Justice and accept responsibility for things that you did not do in order to avoid a stronger sentence," he said. Todd said he felt "numb" when he received word that he was being pardoned. "I had a staff member that came to me and said 'you've just been pardoned.' And I just looked at him, and he says, 'No, really, you've been pardoned. It's in the news. And so I walked up to call her, and she said 'It's true. It's true,'" he said referring to Savannah. "All I could think about was the guys that I was leaving behind," he added. He said that as he was leaving federal prison on Wednesday, hundreds of his fellow inmates lined up to say goodbye. "They were saying 'Don't leave. Don't forget us. Don't forget us.' And my commitment is to them that I will never forget them." Todd and Savannah vowed to help reform the criminal justice system and "expose the corruption." Until then, they will be filming more reality television. Todd confirmed that he and his wife started filming "literally the night that we got home, as soon as we got home." "They've already got all the offers rolling in, so it's going to make life so much easier," Savannah said. "You'll see him on quite a few different shows, I have a feeling." This article was originally published on
NBC News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- NBC News
Chrisley family to hold first press conference since Trump's presidential pardon
The Chrisley family is set to address reporters on Friday, days after the formerly jailed reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley were pardoned by President Donald Trump and released from federal prison. The family will be holding a press conference at 10:30 a.m. CT, 11:30 a.m. ET, at the Kimpton Aertson Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee, flanked by their attorneys. It is unclear if Todd and Julie Chrisley will be present. Trump issued pardons to the Chrisleys on Wednesday. The pair, known for their roles on reality TV show 'Chrisley Knows Best,' were convicted in 2022 of tax evasion and defrauding banks to obtain personal loans worth more than $36 million and fund a lavish lifestyle. Prosecutors said that the Chrisleys submitted false bank statements, audit reports and personal financial statements to Georgia community banks to obtain the loans. They were found guilty by an Atlanta jury in 2022 and convicted of fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison and Julie Chrisley was sentenced to seven years. Their daughter, Savannah Chrisley, was pivotal in getting her parents released. The 27-year-old spoke at the Republican National Convention in July and began petitioning Trump to pardon her parents before the president was inaugurated, according to the Chrisleys' attorney, Alex Little. Little told NBC News on Wednesday that the family did not try to petition the Biden administration for the couple's release. Julie Chrisley made her first public outing on Thursday, to a butcher shop in Nashville, Tennessee. The 52-year-old was sporting her natural hair color, gray. Later that day, Savannah Chrisley also posted selfies with her father on Instagram and captioned the images: "To the paparazzi following us looking to pay your bills… here's your photo." The Chrisleys' pardons were among several presidential clemencies to raise eyebrows in recent months. Former President Joe Biden issued a pardon for his son Hunter Biden on federal gun and tax charges in December, and pre-emptive pardons for other members of his family before leaving office. Within his first days of his second term, Trump pardoned roughly 1,500 criminal defendants in connection with the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. And on Monday, Trump announced he was pardoning Scott Jenkins, a former sheriff of Culpeper County, Virginia. The former sheriff was sentenced to 10 years in prison last year for accepting over $75,000 in exchange for giving law enforcement authority to local businessmen, in addition to two undercover FBI agents. The Chrisleys' former accountant, who was found guilty in 2022 of defrauding the Internal Revenue Service, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday that he also plans to petition the Trump administration for a pardon. The accountant, Peter Tarantino, served three years in prison for the crimes. Chase Chrisley, one of the convicted couple's sons, did not rule out whether his parents would return to reality TV in an interview with "Entertainment Tonight" on Thursday. He cautioned that "there's no deal in place for my parents." Chase added that cameras were rolling when he and his siblings first spoke with their parents by telephone after their pardons were announced. 'You guys will see it. And it's just been raw reality and truth of, like, the struggles that we've been going through as a family, as individuals and how to navigate that while still staying together and holding our family together,' he said. It is unclear if the reality stars will be filming the press conference on Friday.
