Former reality TV star Savannah Chrisley made a celebrity guest appearance at the Republican National Convention Tuesday, delivering a speech about the justice system as both of her parents sit behind bars.
"You may have seen my family on TV, but for the past decade, we've been consumed with a different kind of drama," she told the crowd at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on the second day of the GOP convention. "My family was persecuted by rogue prosecutors in Fulton County due to our public profile."
Chrisley is the daughter of Todd and Julie Chrisley, who earned fame for the show "Chrisley Knows Best," which chronicled the exploits of their tight-knit family.
Julie and Todd Chrisley were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans. The Chrisleys were also found guilty of tax evasion by hiding their earnings while showcasing an extravagant lifestyle.
The couple's accountant, Peter Tarantino, stood trial with them and was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and willfully filing false tax returns.
"I got custody of my brother and sister - 10 and 16 at the time," Savannah Chrisley said in her speech. "And you don't know heartache until you look two children in the eyes and say, 'I don't know when mom and dad are coming home.' I'll never forget what the prosecutor said. In the most heavily Democrat county in the state before an Obama appointed judge, he called us the 'Trumps of the South.' Now, hey, it's fine. He meant it as an insult, but let me tell you, boy, do I wear it as a badge of honor."
Before the Chrisleys became reality television stars, they and a former business partner submitted false documents to banks in the Atlanta area to obtain fraudulent loans, prosecutors said during the trial. They accused the couple of spending lavishly on luxury cars, designer clothes, real estate and travel, and using new fraudulent loans to pay off old ones. Todd Chrisley then filed for bankruptcy, according to prosecutors, walking away from more than $20 million in unpaid loans.
RNC Milwaukee
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.
Their defense attorneys argued unsuccessfully on appeal that an IRS officer lied at the trial when he testified about the couple still owing taxes and that prosecutors knowingly failed to correct that false testimony. They also asserted that prosecutors failed to show enough evidence to convict the Chrisleys of tax evasion and conspiracy, or that Julie Chrisley participated in bank fraud.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter.
Last year, Todd and Julie Chrisley's sentences were shortened by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. However, in a recent turn of events, Julie Chrisley’s prison sentence was vacated and she is expected to get resentenced, TODAY reported.
Savannah Chrisley recently addressed the turn of events, saying she hopes her mother will be home by Thanksgiving.
“We’re pleased that the Court agreed that Julie’s sentence was improper, but we’re obviously disappointed that it rejected Todd’s appeal," Alex Little, an attorney for the couple, said in an email message. He added that the Chrisley family was "hopeful for more good news in the future.”
Todd Chrisley, 56, is at a minimum security federal prison camp in Pensacola, Florida, with a release date in September 2032, while Julie Chrisley, 51, is at a facility in Lexington, Kentucky.
