Chrisleys’ Gilded Lives Shattered by Jail, Face Reality Post-Trump Pardon

They had the glistening teeth, honey-colored perma-tans, perfect hair and a portfolio of multi-million dollar mansions.

And, of course, the fame. In fact, they had it all.

Tennessee-based reality television couple Todd and Julie Chrisley lived an over-the-top glamorous life that many aspire to but few ever reach.

Until, that is, the dream sensationally imploded in head-snapping fashion and the humiliated husband and wife stars became convicted fraudsters following a $30 million loan scam and tax evasion trial in 2022.

Their luxury lifestyle was replaced with three hots and a cot in state prison.

Julie, 52, was originally sentenced to seven years behind bars and 56-year-old Todd was sentenced to 20 years.

Julie and Todd Chrisley, pictured in 2018, have been sensationally pardoned by Donald Trump despite being found guilty of a $30 million loan scam

The couple used their ill-gotten funds to pay for the their rarified lifestyle. 

They rose to fame a decade ago in their smash USA Network show as self-made, supposedly God-fearing real estate experts who lived in a 30,000-square-foot mansion outside Atlanta.

But according to prosecutors, their empire was ‘based on the lie that their wealth came from dedication and hard work’ and  that in reality they were ‘career swindlers who have made a living by jumping from one fraud scheme to another, lying to banks, stiffing vendors and evading taxes at every corner.’ 

In a shock twist worthy of a nail-biting season finale, the duo – former stars of Chrisley Knows Best and several spin-offs – are now embarking on a fresh future courtesy of President Donald Trump.

On Tuesday, it was announced the Commander in Chief will wipe clean their criminal record with a prized presidential pardon although he confessed, somewhat bizarrely, ‘I don’t know them.’

Their convictions, he claims, were among a string that exemplified a weaponized justice system of his predecessor, Joe Biden. 

Todd and Julie face a bold but uncertain new reality after prison. Their precarious finances mean they can’t simply slip back into their once-glamorous lives, even if a large check for a new reality TV deal comes their way.  

The telegenic couple married in 1996 and share three children together – Chase, 28, Savannah, 27, and 19-year-old college student Grayson.

Todd also has a daughter, Lindsie, 35, and son, Kyle, 33, from his first marriage to Teresa Terry which ended in 1996.

Julie and her handsome husband have not been able to speak in two years since their incarceration.

The family matriarch has said she wants to retrain for a new career and is considering different options.

‘I’ve taken tests for new skills such as driving a forklift and serving food in proper ways…this has been the most difficult time of my life,’ she told a court hearing in September last year in a failed effort to make parole. 

Now, those new skills may come in handy.  

With millions to pay back in restitution from her illegal endeavors, she will need to find some way of paying the bills.

The cast of Chrisley Knows Best, Season 1 (left to right): Savannah Chrisley, Todd Chrisley, Chase Chrisley, Grayson Chrisley, Julie Chrisley, Kyle Chrisley, Lindsie Chrisley 

President Trump personally called Savannah — who has become a fixture in the MAGA world amid her fight for her parents’ release — to inform her of his decision on Tuesday

The Chrisleys sold the larger of their two Tennessee estates, in Brentwood, for $5.2m in 2024

They appear to still own the smaller of their Tennessee homes, in Nashville. It’s worth $2.8m

Maybe it was a nod to a shared background with reality TV fame and his own brush with the law amid impeachment and sex abuse scandals that partially encouraged Trump to gift the Chrisleys their clemency.

What we do know is that he was persuaded to grant them a golden ticket following a lobbying campaign by Savannah, a prominent MAGA supporter and podcaster.

Trump called her from the Oval Office while sat behind his desk on Tuesday to break the news.

A video of the exchange was posted to X by White House spokesperson Margo Martin labeled ‘Trump Knows Best!’

‘Your parents are going to be free and clean and I hope that we can do it by tomorrow,’ he was shown telling Savannah in the video.

‘They’ve been given a pretty harsh treatment based on what I’m hearing. That’s a terrible thing, that’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?’

‘I don’t know them, but them give my regards. Wish them a good life.’

Then in an emotional post to her Instagram account, with blonde hair partially tucked underneath a white MAGA cap, Savannah gleefully revealed: ‘I have shed so many tears.’

Her parents, she confirmed, could be walking out of the prison gates within hours.

‘The President called me personally as I was walking into Sam’s Club and notified me that he was signing pardon paperwork for both of my parents,’ she said.

‘So, both my parents are coming home tonight or tomorrow.’

And she added: ‘I will forever be grateful for President Trump, his administration and everyone along the way.’

Todd Chrisley pictured with daughter Savannah in 2019

She praised the ‘people who put in countless hours and effort and love for my family to make sure my parents got home.’

She was frantically ‘putting clothes together for mom and dad, getting their room put together upstairs.

‘I can’t thank you guys enough for sticking with my family along the way, for loving us [and] supporting us.

‘To all of the political figures I have come in contact with over the past two and a half years that believed in me and believed in my family: Thank you.

‘I’m freaking out. I am going to go prepare to pick up my parents and I just can’t thank you guys enough. They’re coming home. My parents get to start their lives over.

‘President Trump didn’t just commute their sentences, he gave them a full, unconditional pardon.

‘So for that I am forever grateful. Thank you, President Trump.’

She also vowed, to ‘stand next to [Trump] and [his] administration and to stand up to the corruption and to continue fighting for the men and women that are in prison.

‘I will repay your kindness to every person that I meet, so thank God for a president like Donald J. Trump.’

Todd and Julie Chrisley ‘s daughter Savannah Chrisley is reacting to the news that President Donald Trump has decided to pardon her reality TV star parents

The Chrisley’s were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud banks in the Atlanta area out of more than $30 million in loans after submitting false documents.

The pair were also found guilty of tax evasion and faking their earnings.

They reneged on their loans and Todd declared bankruptcy while still owing $20 million.

Last September, Julie attempted to have her sentence reduced but U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross upheld her original 2022 ruling.

Prosecutors had argued that she was a ‘core part’ of the fraud scheme.

Julie told the court: ‘I apologize for my actions and what led me to where I am today.’

Her incarceration, she said, had been ‘the most difficult time in my life. I cannot ever repay my children for what they have had to go through and for that I am sorry.’

The couple were ordered to pay restitution of $17.8 million.

The Chrisleys’ attorney, Alex Little, said the pardon ‘corrects a deep injustice and restores two devoted parents to their family and community.

‘President Trump recognized what we’ve argued from the beginning: Todd and Julie were targeted because of their conservative values and high profile.

‘Their prosecution was tainted by multiple constitutional violations and political bias.’

He added: ‘Todd and Julie’s case is exactly why the pardon power exists. Thanks to President Trump, the Chrisley family can now begin healing and rebuilding their lives.”

Asked on X why the Chrisley’s deserved by be pardoned, Little responded: ‘I’ve got a few hundred pages of post-trial motions and appellate briefs that explain why. But the gist is: some serious constitutional error and egregiously harsh sentencing.’

Daily Mail has reached out to Savannah for comment.