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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Alice Marie Johnson Addresses Julie Chrisley, Todd Chrisley's Pardons
Originally appeared on E! Online The Chrisleys worked for their release. After Todd Chrisley and Julie Chrisley returned home from prison following unexpected presidential pardons from Donald Trump, the White House credits their daughter Savannah Chrisley for the decision. 'The celebrity part really didn't play a role in this,' Pardon Czar Alice Marie Johnson shared on NewsNation Live May 29. 'I'm going to say that if they did not have a daughter like Savannah who was out there fighting for them, they would not have been pardoned.' 'These are everyday Americans who deserve a second chance,' she continued. 'I've really been looking at those who pose no safety risk, don't have victims of violent crimes. These people need to be returned to their families. They really get a chance to have a second shot at life.' Alice commended Savannah, 27, for stepping up since her parents—who also share 28-year-old son Chase Chrisley, as well as Todd and ex-wife Teresa Terry's kids Lindsie Chrisley, 35, and Kyle Chrisley, 33—were convicted of tax evasion and wire fraud in 2022. More from E! Online How Julie Chrisley Feels About Ditching Her Blonde Hair After Prison Gigi Hadid and Bella Hadid Reveal Secret Half-Sister Aydan Nix Julie Chrisley Looks Unrecognizable in First Photo After Prison Release 'This woman has worked relentlessly for her parents,' she said. 'I know that everyone in prison wishes they had an advocate like Savannah Chrisley.' The Unlocked with Savannah Chrisley host—the legal guardian of her younger siblings Grayson, 18, and Chloe, 11, since their arrest—had brought visibility to her parents' case, as well as appealing the decision with the courts. After years of advocacy, Alice—whose sentence was commuted by Trump in 2018 after Kim Kardashian's criminal justice reform campaign—revealed that it was their eldest daughter who first received the news. 'I was there with the president when he called them, so he was the one who told them,' she explained. 'He called Savannah to let her know that her parents were being set free.' Savannah shared insight into the emotional experience, telling E! News in a statement, 'For the past two and a half years, I've done everything in my power to fight for my parents' freedom and bring them home.' 'This moment is the answer to countless prayers, and I am beyond grateful to President Trump for seeing the truth and restoring my family,' she wrote. 'Today is a victory for our family, but the fight against wrongful convictions and injustice within our prison system is far from over. I will continue to use my voice and platform to advocate for those who do not have one.' Keep reading for a closer look at Todd and Julie's legal saga, and tune into E! on June 1 from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. to catch up on Chrisley Knows Best. Indicted on Tax Evasion and Other ChargesTodd and Julie Found GuiltySentenced to Multiple Years in PrisonStarting Their SentencesNo ContactTodd Details Filthy Prison ConditionsSavannah Chrisley Speaks OutJulie's Prison Sentence OverturnedA Tearful ApologyPresident Donald Trump Pardons the Chrisleys
Newsweek
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Donald Trump to Pardon Reality Show Couple Todd and Julie Chrisley
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he plans to grant full pardons to Todd and Julie Chrisley, the stars of the reality TV show Chrisley Knows Best. The couple rose to fame portraying a tight-knit, faith-centered Southern family enjoying an extravagant lifestyle. In 2022, they were convicted of defrauding banks in the Atlanta out of more than $30 million and evading taxes. The pardons come amid Trump's broader pattern of granting clemency to high-profile allies and supporters, sparking renewed debate over the use of presidential pardon powers. In a social media post, the White House said Trump personally called their daughter, Savannah Chrisley, to deliver the news, quipping, "Trump Knows Best!" Savannah could be heard on the call thanking the president. Newsweek has reached out to Savannah Chrisley via her real estate company via email Tuesday night for comment. Why It Matters The decision to pardon the Chrisleys adds to Trump's record of using executive clemency for politically aligned figures and public personalities. On Monday, t he president pardoned Scott Jenkins, a former Virginia sheriff, who was recently sentenced to 10 years in prison after being convicted on charges of conspiracy, fraud and bribery. The president also recently granted a pardon to Paul Walczak, a Florida health care executive convicted on tax charges. His mother played a role in revealing the contents of a diary belonging to Ashley Biden, daughter of former President Joe Biden. What to Know The Chrisleys were found guilty in 2022 of submitting fraudulent documents to secure tens of millions in loans, then using the money to fund a lavish lifestyle including luxury cars, designer clothing and real estate. Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in prison and Julie Chrisley to seven; they were also ordered to pay $17.8 million in restitution. Prosecutors said Todd had also filed for bankruptcy and abandoned more than $20 million in unpaid loans. An appellate court later upheld their convictions but returned Julie's case to the lower court for resentencing due to an error in how her sentence was calculated. The Chrisley case has gained significant media attention not only because of the couple's celebrity status but also due to claims by their legal team and supporters that they were unfairly targeted for their values and visibility. Savannah Chrisley said at the 2024 Republican National Convention that prosecutors referred to the family as the "Trumps of the South" — a comparison she said she wears "as a badge of honor." In February, Savannah told People magazine that she hoped Trump would pardon her parents. "I know that I am going through the proper channels to do so, and I'm going to bring as much awareness to it as possible because these things should not happen," she told the outlet. "We thought it was going to end differently," she continued. "We had lawyers who had told us it was going to end differently. We stood in the truth, and we stood in what we knew to be the truth. We saw the corruption in Fulton County. We saw how the judge handled the case. We just saw all of it and we're like, 'There's no way. There's no way it's going to end this way.' But it did," she added. What People Are Saying "Your parents are going to be free and clean... I hope that we can do it by tomorrow." He added that they had received "pretty harsh treatment." The Chrisleys' attorney, Alex Little, praised the decision, saying it:"corrects a deep injustice" and accusing the government of targeting the couple due to "conservative values and high profile." Lance Wilson, director of communications and policy for the Anti Police-Terror Project, posted on X, formerly Twitter,"The Chrisleys defrauded banks out of $36 million—and they're walking away after serving just a fraction of their time. Meanwhile, there are Black folks serving life for stealing a pack of gum. That's not justice. That's white privilege—and exactly who Trump protects." What's Next The White House has not yet issued the official paperwork, but an administration official confirmed to the Associated Press the pardons are imminent. Once signed, the pardons would nullify the Chrisleys' convictions and eliminate the remaining prison time and financial penalties. For the Chrisley family, it marks the beginning of a new chapter — one focused on what their attorney called "healing and rebuilding." This is developing news and will be updated as more information is available. Update: 5/27/25, 5:34 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and remarks. Update: 5/27/25, 5:46 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
Fox News
23-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Savannah Chrisley says she 'lost some deals' over Trump support, conservative beliefs
Savannah Chrisley opened up about how speaking out about her conservative political views impacted her career. In July 2024, the 27-year-old TV personality gave a speech at the Republican National Convention where she endorsed now-President Donald Trump ahead of the 2024 election, saying that her family being branded the "Trumps of the South" was a "badge of honor." Chrisley has also frequently voiced her support for Trump and his Make America Great Again movement on her social media. The former "Chrisley Knows Best" star recently revealed that she plans to seek a presidential pardon from Trump for her parents, Todd and Julie Chrisley, who remain incarcerated after being convicted of federal bank fraud and tax evasion. During a recent interview with People magazine, Chrisley admitted that publicly sharing her conservative beliefs came with a price. "I lost some deals when I came out politically on why I stood for what I stood for," she said. Chrisley told People her podcast "Unlocked" has helped her support her family financially and has enabled her to have a "louder voice" when expressing her political views. "It's giving me a job to provide for my family, and that's the number one thing that I'm so grateful for," said Chrisley, who became the legal guardian of her sister Chloe, 12, and brother Grayson, 18, when her parents went to prison. However, she explained that her outspokenness has limited her income since she has been told that advertisers 'don't want to touch conservative.'" "That was a tough thing for me because once again, I was being forced in a hole of — do I stand for what I believe in, or do I feed my family. Which one? We should never live in a world where your job is in jeopardy, because of [a] difference of beliefs," Chrisley told People. "It should never be that way and unfortunately, it was," she continued. "You can have differences of opinions and beliefs, and still voice your stance on something." Regardless of losing out on lucrative contracts, Chrisley said, "It was all worth it." Chrisley also told People that it was also important for her to set an example for Grayson and Chloe as she didn't want them to grow up believing that they had to hide their views or give into pressure from others. "It was all worth it." Chrisley is also working with the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). She serves as the organization's senior fellow for criminal justice reform and hosted a CPAC event at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate last November. Looking back, Chrisley said that she was galvanized to speak out after her parents were sentenced to prison. The former reality stars are currently serving out their combined 19-year prison sentence at separate facilities in Kentucky and Florida. Each reported to prison in January 2023 after being convicted in November 2022. "Probably a year after my parents left, I just became very outspoken, because I knew nothing about our criminal justice system," Chrisley recalled. "I honestly thought bad people go to prison. That's what I thought. And that is so far from the truth." "I grew up in the South, where you live, breathe, and die for our country. You respect our flag, you respect our nation. You respect our police force. You believe everything that they say it is. And now, I don't. I believe nothing," she continued. "My eyes have been opened to what actually happens in our criminal justice system, how broken it is." "When I started realizing these things, I just knew I can't stay silent about it any longer. I have to come out about it."CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
