Freshly-pardoned reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley have opened up to the daughter-in-law of the man who released them from jail.
Lara Trump, who is married to Donald Trump’s second son, Eric, has scored an exclusive interview with the Chrisley Knows Best identities, to air on Fox News this Saturday night.
The pair were pardoned by Donald Trump on May 28 this year, after they had each served two years of their respective prison sentences.
The husband and wife were convicted of tax evasion and also of defrauding community banks of more than $30 million for personal loans.
Todd was sentenced to 12 years, Julie to seven, with both going behind bars in January 2023. Chrisley Knows Best was also cancelled by the USA Network following their imprisonment.
The show, which ran for 10 seasons, followed real estate tycoon Todd and his wife and children.
In a preview of her interview, Lara Trump discovered the couple went 28 months without speaking to each other.
“It was surreal,” Julie Chrisley said. “People have asked `Was it weird, was it awkward?’ It really wasn’t.”
Todd Chrisley then adds, “I was never away from her, because she was in my spirit the entire time. I thought of her every second of my day, so when I hugged her the first time it was like I was home. I knew I was coming home to the same woman that I left.”
The Chrisley patriarch added, “Now, when I say the same, I’m talking about in my heart spiritually. We have changed, and if we did not change in these 28 months it would have been wasted.”
The Chrisley family have long been Trump supporters. Daughter Savannah spoke at the 2024 Republican National Convention. President Trump called Savannah and her brother Grayson to share the news their parents were due to be pardoned.
In a video of the call, the president told Savannah, “It’s a great thing because your parents are going to be free and clean. I don’t know them but give them my regards, I wish them a good life… they were given a pretty harsh treatment given what I’m hearing.”
Savannah Chrisley had American criminal justice reform advocate and former federal prisoner Alice Marie Johnson as a guest on her podcast Unlocked last year.
Trump granted Johnson clemency in June 2018, allowing her to leave jail after 21 years. In February of this year, Trump named her his “Pardon Czar”. Johnson was instrumental in the Chrisley pardon, and was in the background when Trump called the family to break the news.
At a May press conference after their release, Savannah explained, “Alice obviously came on my podcast before she ever got the (Czar) role and what I respect about her is she’s not in the art of giving favors, neither is president Trump, and when she got the role she looked into our case and saw the injustices.”
Todd said at the same Nashville media call, “As bad as this experience has been, there’s also been a lot of lessons to come from it. Whether you believe it or not, even though this pardon has happened, I still was convicted of something that I did not do.”
He also confirmed they have started filming a new reality show, which will air on Lifetime at a date to be announced. “We’re blessed to have our family back and we’re blessed to be coming back to television,” Todd said. “Because we do have a much bigger story to tell than we ever have.”
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