President Donald Trump pardoned reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, who are best known for their 10 seasons on Chrisley Knows Best, after they were convicted of tax evasion and bank fraud.
Trump issued clemency to the couple on Tuesday as part of a broader effort to correct what Trump sees as the weaponization of the Justice Department under the Biden administration.
Who are Todd and Julie Chrisley?
Todd and Julie Chrisley are multimillionaire real estate tycoons based in Atlanta, Georgia.
Their reality TV series Chrisley Knows Best premiered in 2014 on the USA Network and follows their misadventures with their three grown children.
What were the Chrisleys’ crimes?
In 2022, the Chrisleys were convicted of eight counts of financial fraud and two counts of tax evasion. Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in prison, and Julie Chrisley was sentenced to seven years.
The couple was found guilty of conspiring with a former business partner to defraud community banks in the Atlanta area and obtain more than $36 million in personal loans, according to the Justice Department.
“The Chrisleys, with the help of their former business partner, submitted false bank statements, audit reports, and personal financial statements to Georgia community banks to obtain the loans,” the Justice Department said. “The Chrisleys spent the money on luxury cars, designer clothes, real estate, and travel — and used new fraudulent loans to pay back old ones.”
The couple was also found guilty of attempting to defraud the Internal Revenue Service.
Why are they being pardoned?
The Chrisleys’ legal team filed their legal request for a presidential pardon in February 2025.
Trump, who was also prosecuted by the Biden administration’s Department of Justice, believes that the couple was “unfairly targeted” by the “weaponized” Biden DOJ.
“[Trump is] always pleased to give well-deserving Americans a second chance, especially those who have been unfairly targeted and overly prosecuted by an unjust justice system,” White House spokesman Harrison Fields said in a statement, per NBC News.
What is their relationship to Trump?
While Trump does not know the Chrisleys personally, their daughter Savannah is a vocal supporter of the president. She called for Trump to pardon her parents during the 2024 Republican National Convention.
Trump spoke with Savannah on the phone on Tuesday, sharing that he hoped to pardon her parents by Wednesday.
“Your parents are going to be free and clean,” Trump said. “And I hope we’re going to do it by tomorrow.”
TRUMP TO PARDON REALITY TV STARS TODD AND JULIE CHRISLEY AS HIS CLEMENCY ACTS DRAW SCRUTINY
Recent string of pardons for victims of ‘weaponized Biden DOJ’
Since taking office, Trump has issued a slew of pardons for people he deemed victims of Justice Department weaponization, including 1,600 charged for their involvement in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
On Monday, he issued a pardon for Scott Jenkins, a former Virginia sheriff, who was sentenced to ten years in prison for accepting $75,000 in bribes.