Investigating The Chrisley’s

0:19 Welcome back to Exposed scandalous files of the elite. I'm your host, Jim Chapman, and today we're gonna step into one of reality television's most popular and unforgettable families. Now, for years, Todd and Julie Chrisly lived like the modern American royalty family. They had lavish homes, designer wardrobes, fast cars, and a tight knit family that seem larger than life on USA Network's hit series Chrisly Knows Best. They weren't just reality stars. They built a. Whole brand around bold Southern charisma, no filter parenting in an unapologetic person suit of the best that life had to offer. Millions of people, including myself, turned in every week to watch them navigate, marriage, raising kids, running businesses, And it was, for me and millions of others very entertaining TV. But behind those cameras was the true story.

1:20 One rooted and humble beginnings, relentless ambition, devastating personal and financial struggles, federal crimes, years spent a part in prison, and a presidential pardon that brought them back into the spotlight. So in this episode, I'm going to unpack every bit of it. We're going to explore Todd Chrisly's early life and rise from a modest South Carolina home, Julie's own formative years and her path to partnership, their marriage and building a blended family in a business empire. We're going to cover the explosive success of their reality TV dynasty, the hidden struggles that were beneath the surface, the shocking arrest and legal battle, of course, their convictions, and what prison life looked like for both of these folks, who, let's face it, you know, these aren't exactly the type of people that are what you would consider the prison type, if there was a type. So what followed all of that was a long fight for freedom, presidential pardons, and another shot of life.

2:26 Today. We're going to examine it all right from the beginning. So let's get into it, and we're gonna start with Michael Todd Christley. He was born in nineteen sixty nine in Georgia, and he entered the world as the oldest of three sons to Jean and Faye Chrisly. His father was a US Army veteran who served in the Korean War, and bringing home discipline to that family was important to this guy. If you've ever known any of the folks that served in the Korean War, even the Vietnam War.

3:19 Discipline a big deal and the you know, the Chrisly household was ran like a military household. But it was his mother, Faye, who had become a defining influence on young Todd's life. Fay worked grueling shifts, often up to sixty hours a week. She worked in a textile meal in what's known as Westminster, South Carolina, where the family eventually lived, and this was far from the glamorous existence he would experience later on in life, and I think it contributed a lot to the value that he put on money, because the Chrislies modestly and Fay's tireless work ethic was really the backbone of what kept that household afloat, and Todd had spoken openly about watching his mother pour everything she had into providing for her boys, a lesson in hustle that would shape his entire approach to not only life but business. Now, tragedy would also touch his family.

4:24 Early on, one of Todd's younger brothers, Derek, passed away from complications in emfasy, and this is in nineteen seventy one, and you know those early hardships, the financial strain, the loss of this brother, and the daily grind that would instill in Todd a fierce drive to rise above those circumstances. He wasn't content with simply getting by from a young age. He would envision building something substantial, something that would secure his family's future, and something that would enable him not to have to struggle like his parents and siblings. Now Westminster, South Carolina, that's a small, tight knit town, limited opportunity there.

5:16 Todd would attend school and he would develop a bold, outspoken personality, the same personality you would see on the TV show, the same one that would absolutely captivate television audiences, and friends and family would describe him as charismatic, ambitious, and unafraid to speak his mind, even at an early age. So in nineteen ninety Todd gets married to someone by the name of Teresa Terry. And this was not a good marriage. Now, the reason that they got married, according to Todd, is she got pregnant, she got knocked up, and his mother pressured him to marry this girl. This is all according to him. So they get married. They have a daughter named Lindsey and a son named Kyle now Lindsey, was born in nineteen eighty nine, which is the year before they got married, and Kyle would come along a year after they got married, and on paper it seemed like, you know, they got two kids, they're having them kind of back to back, They're happy.

6:22 They were not. Todd just was felt like he was forced into getting married to this girl. They would eventually divorce in the mid nineteen nineties, and they would finalize that divorce in nineteen ninety six, and it was quite messy, as you can imagine, with two young children involved, and that would make things a lot worse on that divorce proceeding. Todd would later describe this period as one of profound change for him, and he would kind of focus on reprioritizing his life and really making his business center first and foremost in his mind.

7:04 Now. Even during this time, however, Todd's real estate dreams they would continue to grow. He founded and built what's known as Christly Asset Management, and that company focused on property development management, and they would make investment deals all across the Southeast United States Florida, Georgia, South Carolina especially, and his reputation as a sharp businessman would begin to spread and it was interesting to me that he didn't actually start out in the real estate field. As a matter of fact, at one point he lived in Los Angeles and he worked for like Banana Republic, and he was in the retail I guess, the retail industry.

7:48 But he would dress folks, that's what he did. So he told a story on an interview I saw at one point where he said, Willie Nelson came into Banana Republic because he was going to Africa or somewhere on a safari and he wanted Todd to dress him and he did, and he loves to tell that story. But he wasn't in real estate, although he really enjoyed it, had an interest in it, and so when he went back to his regular life after that first marriage, he really dove into it. Now, his business philosophy it was straightforward, just work harder than everyone else, projects success, and never settle, and he believed in presenting the best version of his self in his business ventures. In this mindset that would define both his television persona and even the controversies that would follow. By the time his first marriage had really been in the tail lights. If you will, Todd was already positioning himself as a self made man on the rise.

8:53 He was juggling single fatherhood, custody matters, and a rapidly growing real estate portfolio. So while Todd's navigating the ups and downs of building his real estate empire, another young woman from the same small corner of South Carolina was charting her own course. And that woman's name was Julie Hughes and she was born in nineteen seventy three in Westminster, South Carolina. Now Julie, She grew up in a very modest double wide trailer. She was the daughter of a Baptist minister named Harvey and his wife Pam. And faith, family and community. They were all very important to her upbringing, as you could imagine with a father who was a Baptist minister. And life was simple, but it was grounded in strong values, hard work, resilience, honesty, all the things.

9:48 Money was often tight, and Julie would learn early what it meant to appreciate what she had now. She attended school, also in Westminster and was known as a bright, arsenable young lady with a strong sense of responsibility, and after graduating, she took a practical step into the working world. She landed a job at a local bank, and this job in particular would give her some pretty good insight in the finance, customer service and the inner workings of money management, and those skills would later prove valuable in her life with Todd. So in nineteen ninety one, at the very early age of eighteen, Julie would get married to her first husband. He was a construction worker and his name was Kenneth Childress. But the marriage didn't last long. It would ultimately end in divorce. As you can imagine, it's pretty hard to make it work when you get married at that young of an age, and not much is known about this divorce except that it occurred so by the men. In nineteen nineties, Julie was back in Westminster, she was working at the bank and she was carrying this strength that would later find her as the matriarch of that Chrisly family.

11:03 She was known for a. Awesome personality, a very quick wit, an ability to find humor in even the most difficult situations, and that would really gain her a following years later with that TV show. And it was also during this period that Julie would cross paths with one Todd Chrisly So Todd met Julie through mutual friends, and the chemistry was immediate. Julie would be seen by those who knew them as the perfect counterbalance to Todd's bold, high energy personality. She was grounded, she was supportive, but she was unafraid to speak her mind when she needed to. Their connection moved quickly, and in nineteen ninety six, Todd and Julie were married. And this was May twenty fifth of nineteen ninety six, and just days later, on June one of nineteen ninety six, they welcomed their first child together, a son they named Chase.

12:05 The following year, on August eleventh of nineteen ninety seven, a daughter would be born and they named her Savannah. Then in two thousand and six, they completed their biological family with the birth of their son, Grayson. Now Julie would have no problem jumping into the role of wife, mother, and also as a partner in Todd's growing business. She would help manage the household while Todd grew chrisly asset management, and Julie wasn't just along for the ride. She was an active participant. If nothing else, she offered the support Todd needed as he pursued success, But life was not without its test y'all. In twenty twelve, she faced one of her toughest battles when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

12:55 She would undergo a double masectomy and reconstructive surgery. In through it all, Todd was by her side. Julie would come out of the experience cancer free and more determined than ever to live life. That same year, however, more trouble would emerge when Todd was forced to file for Chapter seven bankruptcy. Core documents would reveal significant debt, reportedly around forty nine million dollars against far fewer assets, and that filing stemmed largely from a failed real estate development deal where Todd had personally guaranteed a large loan. Now During this time, the family also navigated some pretty complex dynamics with Todd's older children. Remember this is a blended family in twenty twelve. In twenty thirteen, Todd and Julie took on a new responsibility when they gained custody of Todd's granddaughter, Chloe, who is his son Kyle's daughter. Chloe arrived and she added another layer to their already full household.

14:03 So at this point the stage was set, and in twenty fourteen, the Chrisly family would become household names over night. In March of that year, USA Network would premiere Chrisly Knows Best, which was a docu style reality series that centered around this family. The show introduced viewers to Todd as really a larger than life patriarch, a self made millionaire with wit, great style, and very strong opinions on everything from parenting to business to politics, and Julie portrayed the warm, witty, grounded wife and mother who kept the family anchored with humor in southern charm and the premise it was pretty simple but ultra successful, basically followed the Chrislies as they navigated everyday life with a heavy dose of extravagance. An audience watch Todd manage his real estate empire while dishing out tough love to Chase, Savannah and Grayson, and they saw Julie juggling motherhood, marriage, and their own identity.

15:13 And the show would also feature appearances from Todd's older children, Lendsy and Kyle, as well as young Chloe, which created a full picture of a blended Southern dynasty and From the very first episode, Christly Knows Best struck a chord. Viewers were really drawn to the family's unfiltered personalities, they're over the top lifestyle and their relatable family conflicts and Todd's catchphrases that he had on that show, bold statements. They would become subjects of memes. Julie's cooking segments and comebacks will provide kind of that perfect. Balance you look for in TV. And the show wasn't just.

15:56 About wealth and living in ultra rich life lifestyle. It was about family, loyalty, Southern values, and the chaos of raising strong willed kids in a high pressure environment. And ratings would soar. This series, y'all would become a major hit for the USA Network and it ran for a total of ten seasons over two hundred episodes. It would spawn successful spin offs like Growing Up Chrisly, which would follow Chase in Savannah as they attempted to strike out on their own in Los Angeles, and the entire family would then, even after that, launch what's known as Christly Confessions, a popular podcast with Todd and Julie.

16:43 This was in twenty eighteen. Where they offered more intimate conversations about marriage, parenting, faith and life lessons. And the great thing about podcasts as it were related to that show was it wasn't scripted like you get on TV. There's some things you could do and say on TV, and there's some things you can't. There's not that limitation on a podcast, and Julie would even host later on her own digital cooking series called What's Cooking with Julie Chrisly. So at its peak, the chrisly brand itself was unstoppable. It was a powerful, loyal, highly visible family unit that operated with confidence right in the public eye. But as we know, the show wasn't without controversy. Critics would sometimes question how real the storylines were, and the family would face occasional backlash for their outspoken views, especially when it came to politics. But you can take it from me when I tell you that if you don't have haters, you're doing something wrong and you're not being real with your audience. God News, I have my share of haters, and when you put yourself out there in the public, it's really unavoidable. You have to learn to embrace the hate like you embraced the love. And the Chryslies were masters of that, but the vast majority of people they loved the Chryslies, and audiences would keep coming back. Todd and Julie became household names, and they

18:14 appeared on talk shows, they walked direct carpets, and they built a really loyal fan base. But again, not everything is how it seems, and behind those scenes, the demands of constant filming added new pressure. The family had to balance being real with entertainment and do all this while managing real life, growing businesses and raising real life children. In the public eye. Savannah would pursue pageants and fashion, Chase would explore being an entrepreneur, and Grayson would navigate life as the youngest family member in the spotlight. And through it all, Todd and Julie positioned themselves at this point in time as the King and Queen of reality TV, and by twenty eighteen that franchise had reached milestone episodes.

19:07 They all launched new projects like I Just Told You About, and the Chryslies had successfully turned their real lives into some really compelling content, creating a multi media empire that extended far beyond that original TV series. But you know what happens, the higher the climb, the harder the fall. And while those cameras rolled and the fame grew, federal investigators were behind the scenes, quietly building a case that would soon shatter the carefully constructed image that was the Chryslies, and they would attempt to take that family down. So, before we move on into twenty nineteen and beyond, I do want to backtrack a little and cover some of the more interesting storylines that were public during the airing of The Chrystlies, and none was more prevalent than the fact that this was a blended family, which I think personally really helped with the success of the show because it's very relatable. There are millions of blended families out there today and they could relate to the Chryslies. Maybe not financially, but at least in the fact that you're struggling to blend these families together. Now, Julie she embraced this role of a stepmother, and she even legally adopted Lindsey during her teenage years, and for a time it looked like the family was making it work. Lindsey appeared regularly on earlier seasons of the show, and even Kyle would make limited appearances, yet it appeared resentment had been

20:41 simmering from other family members. Savannah Chrysley has spoken candidly about the underlying tension. She described a sense of anger and jealousy from her older half siblings, stemming from the fact that Todd and Julie had created what she termed a nuclear family, and to be fair, here, the younger siblings Chase Savannah Grayson, they grew up with both parents under one roof, right, Lendsy. And Kyle did not. They had to carry the emotional weight of that broken first marriage, and when those cameras started rolling in twenty fourteen, that divide became even more pronounced. The show centered heavily on Todd, Julie, and the three younger children that lived under that same roof, and Lindsey would later express feelings of being made to feel like she was put on the back burner, So the relationship between Todd and Lindsey, to be fair, had already been strained before the show even started. In January of twenty twelve, Lindsey eloped with a guy. His name was Will Campbell.

21:48 She did not. Seek the approval of her father or even you know, tell him about it. And ask him if it be okay. I guess technically she didn't have to seek his approval, but Todd was pissed about this decision. Though he eventually would forgive his son in law, it still caused problems. Now, Lindsey and Will went on to have a son, Jackson, and their marriage would later face its own public issues, including allegations of an extramarital affair that Todd would actually reference during family arguments. Now, the breaking point with Lindsey came during the filming of season five of this show.

22:29 According to Savannah's later accounts, Lindsey went against the family's wishes by waking young Chloe for a social media post when the little girl was already in bed. A heated argument would erupt, and Savannah would describe Lindsey as yelling, screaming, and cussing out Julie. Now, Lindsey would give her own version of that incident, of course, and she would claim Julie shoved her in the neck. But regardless of the exact details, the confrontation marked the end of Lindsey's regular presence on the show. So if you're curious why she didn't go deeper into that series, that was the argument that kind of stem that. So from roughly twenty seventeen onwards, she was absent from that series primarily, and the estrangement would deepen over the following years. And then there was Kyle, who was Ted's oldest son. He faced some very well documented struggles with substance abuse, mental health, and the law, and Todd publicly stated that Kyle lived with bipolar disorder and would struggle for life. After Chloe was born in November of twenty twelve to Kyle and his then girlfriend Angela Johnson, Kyle's personal struggles got worse, and in twenty thirteen, following an arrest for assault, Todd and Julie were granted that joint custody of Chloe. They would later obtain full custody after additional legal issues involving Chloe's mother, and by

23:59 twenty six they had legally adopted Chloe and raised her as their own daughter. Now Kyle, he would only appear sparingly on Christly Knows Best, and in twenty nineteen he was arrested in Oklahoma on felony meth charges, and he has spoken publicly about his addiction issues and his shortcomings as a father to Chloe and the gratitude he felt when Todd and Julie stood by him during difficult times. Yet the pattern of legal trouble would continue in later years, and this would create emotional strain for the entire family. Chloe would eventually, however, become a central part of the household and the show. And of course I've already told you about the financial issues that they had Todd violin for chapter seven bankruptcy in twenty twelve, listing millions of assets against tens of mens in debt, and much of it tied to that felled real estate deal. Well, the family did emerge from that process, and they did continue to project an image of success. They had luxury cars, high end fashion, private education for their kids, and lifestyle that if you're looking at this from the outside, you know it takes a significant cash flow to maintain this.

25:18 So here's the deeper truth about the Christly story. During those years, that same ambition and that same charisma that built their empire also made the internal pressures more explosive. Todd's drive to project strength and success it leaves little room for error. Julie's role as a stabilizer for that family became even more demanding under the spotlight, and the younger children they all grew up in a fishbowl, y'all, while the older ones felt the pain of being kind of outside of the frame of that direct family, and that will create issues. As you can reality TV in and of itself, it didn't create the struggles, but it certainly magnified them. The image, powerful, loyal, larger than life was both a brand and a burden. It demanded the family present the perfect version of itself as real problems existed behind the scenes, and these problems, especially the money problems, threatened to derail this entire thing. So keep in mind, for nearly a decade at this point, Todd and Julie they would present themselves as the ultimate American success story.

26:37 All of this on national television. The mansion, the designer clothes, private jets, southern swagger. It all looked effortless. But while those cameras rolled and millions of viewers tuned in, federal investigators they were quietly constructing a very different narrative. What started as financial scrutiny would grow into a multi year investigation that would culminate into one of the most dramatic White collar cases involving reality TV stars in history. Now, this case itself actually went back many years before the Crystalies were indicted. Prosecutors would allege that between two thousand and seven in twenty twelve, well before Chrystally Knows Best, Premiered, Todd and Julie engaged in a scheme to defraud community banks in the Atlanta area. The accusation was that they submitted falsified personal financial statements, fabricated bank records, and other doctor documents to obtain more than thirty million, and according to some court documents, over thirty six million in loans.

27:48 These loans, the government claimed, would help fund their lifestyle at a time when their actual finances were far less than the documents suggested. So let me put this into layman's terms. What the federal government was claiming was that the Crystalies would go get a loan, and all of us have filled out loan applications, and on those loan applications it asked you things like what is your income, what are your assets? And let's say you were getting a loan, and let's say you put down that you made one million a year, and in reality you only made five hundred thousand a year. Or let's take it a step further. Let's say you made a million dollars a year, but you failed to list any debt you had on that application. Well, the bank takes that application, and based off of the figures you provide, you get approved or denied for that loan. Well, if the debt gets paid, in all likelihood, probably nothing's ever going to be found out relative to the fact that you falsified that application. But if you default on the loan, if you don't pay it back, most assuredly, somebody's going to do some digging to find out how they got screwed out of all this money, and they're gonna see that, Wait a minute, you didn't tell us you were nine hundred thousand in debt when you were pouring cash and saying you make a million dollars a year. Essentially you lied on that application, and that is illegal. Now, personally, I think the bank that you get the loan from

29:19 they take some responsibility here because they failed to do their due diligence somewhere along the line if the figures weren't right and they approved the loan based off of those figures. But certainly if you falsified check stubs, for example, which is something they're accused of doing, payments to yourself, if you're taking those and rewarding things, and we'll get into that more later, but certainly those are things you cannot do. And that's essentially where all of this started, according to prosecutors. So, according to the indictment, Todd directed a former employee to create an altered doc And what I ascertain here is when I say anyway, creating altered documents is according to the indictment, ty Chrisley had this guy print up some fake checks or alter the amount of income on these bank statements that they would turn in that sort of thing. In the banks he was seeking loans from, they will receive these altered statements showing inflated account balances, inflated assets.

30:28 Maybe he list a boat. He had on there that he had, you know, a major line against that boat. But he didn't say that part. He just said I have a fifty thousand dollars boat. He didn't say I still owe forty nine thy five hundred on it. So they're assuming it's paid off and they can repossess it if something happens. But regardless of that falsified shit it. In one particular detailed allegation, prosecutors pointed out a July twenty fourteen incident in which Julie allegedly emailed a re filter and fabricated City National Bank statements while trying to rent a home in California. The documents claimed a positive balance what she turned in of eighty six thousand dollars in their bank account, but in reality, according to authorities, that bank account was overdrawn by fourteen thousand dollars.

31:21 Some of the. Materials were allegedly cut and taped or glued together to create the appearance of being legitimate. This is what the government was alleging, and tax issues would form a second major piece to that case. Prosecutors alleged that the Chryslies failed to timely file federal income tax returns or pay taxes for twenty thirteen, twenty fourteen, twenty fifteen, and twenty sixteen. They also claimed the couple would take steps to hide income, particularly income from their TV production company seven C's productions, in order to obstruct IRS collection effort to pay the tax debt. One method allegedly evolved in keeping corporate accounts in Julie's name, only then transferring ownership to a relative.

32:11 After the IRS started asking questions in their longtime accountant, Peter Tarantino, he was charged alongside them with helping to file false returns and providing incomplete or misleading investigation information to investigators. Now, a central figure in the government's case was a guy by the name of Mark Braddock. And Mark Braddick is a former business associate of Todds who had worked closely with chrisly asset management. Braddick would eventually cooperate with authorities and he would receive full immunity, And that would be kind of a center of this case because the Chris lies. They allege he's lying about all of this. And the reason he is lying about all of this is because the government promised him full immunity if he would lie on the stand, because they really wanted to kind of hang the chryslies for lack of a better word. But this guy would testify that he created false documents at Todd's direction and that he and Todd had paid a blackmailer tens of thousands of dollars in cash to keep certain personal matters quiet. Now, the defense they would paint Braddock as a vengeful, obsessed former employee who acted on his own after being fired in twenty twelve, and who fabricated emails and documents to frame the couple, and Todd is consistently maintained he was set up by this former associates. So it's important to mention

33:41 that to be fair, now, the chrislies, they would first learn they were under serious investigation at the year twenty seventeen. By then, the IRS was seeking information about their accounts and their income, and in August of twenty nineteen, a federal grand jury in Atlanta will return a twelve count indictment charging Todd and Julie with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States. You don't want to be charged with that one, and tax evasion. Peter Tarantino he faced related tax charges, and the US Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia would announce these charges publicly and really place emphasis on the fact that, hey, celebrities, they should get the same treatment as everyone else. And of course Todd and Julie they immediately denied every allegation in public statements, and through their attorneys, they insisted.

34:42 They had done nothing wrong. Todd claimed a former employee had stolen from them for signatures, created funny documents, and blackmailed the family, and that's, of course Braddock that he is referring to. And the lawyers argued the indictment relied heavily on lies from former business partners, and in court the couple would plead not guilty and they were released on bond. Now, at the same time that this is going on, a separate state tax case in Georgia was going on involving allegations of two million dollars in unpaid state taxes. That was resolved with the settlement, and the Chrystalise paid a relatively modest sum and even received a refund for some years in which they had.

35:27 Overpaid on their taxes. So the nearly three year period between the indictment and the trial, as you can imagine, that was tough on the Chrystalise. On one side, they continued filming Crystally Knows Best and related projects, and new episodes would air, and the family they would still appear in public, They would maintain social media, and they would project a lot of strength but on the other side, they lived under the constant weight of federal charges and the possibility of going to prison. Now this is at the high of the COVID nineteen pandemic, y'all, And that didn't help either, And the trial was delayed multiple times due to COVID. But by the spring of twenty twenty two, the long wait was almost over. A nearly three week trial in Atlanta Federal Court was set to begin. So in May of twenty twenty two, Todd and Julie Chrisley, along with their accountant, Peter Tarantino, they faced those indictments on all of those charges.

36:30 Just to slew as shit. Prosecutors would lay out a case alleging the couple had orchestrated a year's long scheme to defraud banks everything I told you about, and over the course of the trial, jurors would hear testimony from bank representatives, ours agents, former employees, and that former business partner, Mark Braddock, and prosecutors would also provide those altered financial documents, emails, bank rivers, all the evidence you would imagine that show in that case, and they would allege that the only way to keep up with these loan payments was to get other loans, and when you do that, when you kind of rob Peter to pay Paul at that level, it's considered a Ponzi scheme. But the defense they would push back pretty aggressively. They would maintain that any irregularities were the results of just innocent mistakes, bad advice, or the actions of untrustworthy former associates, especially Mark Braddock, and they argued that Todd and Julie have relied on professionals and had not knowingly participated in any criminal activity. Julie's defense would emphasize that her role in all of this was very minimal on the business side of things, and both Todd and Julie would take the stand in the case.

37:51 And this trial, y'all, was closely watched by media outlets. It wasn't televised, but media was in that courtroom and they covered every development, and the Chrislies family supporters they would rally publicly, and on June seventh of twenty twenty two, that jury would deliberate and they would deliver a verdict in pretty quick time, and Todd and Julie chris Lee were found guilty on all counts. Peter Tarantino was. Also convicted on related tax charges, and the courtroom went silent as these verdicts were read. For the Chrislies, it was devastating that family that had projected all this strength and unity for years now faced the really real prospect of long prison sentences, and sentencing would come several months later.

38:44 On November twenty first of twenty twenty two, US District Judge Eleanor Ross would sentence Todd Chrisly to twelve years in federal prison plus sixteen months of probation, as well as rusted t approximately seventeen point eight million dollars in restitution. Julie Chrisly she received seven years in prison, the same probation period, in the same restitution order, and the sentences will reflect the judge's assessment of Todd as a more central role in the scheme. Julie got a lot of time seven years, and she probably didn't know a whole lot about all of this. Todd got twelve years.

39:28 Now. The aftermath of that was swift and harsh for that family brand. The Chrislies USA network would cancel Christally Knows Best and all of its spin offs shortly after sentencing. The carefully constructed public image of the Chrystlies had been shattered in the eyes of many, Savannah, Chase and the rest of the family. They would step up publicly. They would express heartbreak, determination to fight on, and the couple were reported to prison in January of twenty t twenty three. And I found this interesting. Todd got sentenced to federal prison camp you ready for this in Pensacola, Florida, and Julie got a much harsher prison because she got sent to Lexington, Kentucky. And for the first time in their low marriage, they're gonna be separated, they claimed later on an interviews. They had never spent a single day apart since getting married, so years of ambition, hard work, fame, and controversy had led to this. Two parents heading to separate federal facilities, their children out there navigating life without them.

40:37 And it was shocking to me that the sentences that were handed down to the financial white collar crime case like this, Okay, these people aren't bank robbers. Well, they didn't go in a bank and rob it with a gun anyway, Yes, if all these allegations were true, they deserve prison time for that. There's no doubt about it. But what surprised me was, remember they were legal guardians of their young granddaughter. And what is commonly done almost all the time in cases like this where it's just white collar crime, financial crime, is they would stagger.

41:17 The prison sentences. One would go to prison, and that way there was one adult still at home taking care of that minor child, and when that person served their prison sentence out, the other person would go to prison. That wasn't the case here. They got sent to prison at the very same time. So, as I said, Todd gets sent the Federal prison camp in Pensacola, which is in Florida, and that's a minimum security facility. It's referred to as a camp due to its lower restrictions than what you would see at higher security prisons. I mean, it's crazy. He essentially got sentenced to twelve years at the beach.

42:02 That blows my mind. Now. Julie, on the other hand, much harsher facility the Federal Medical Center in Lexicon, Kentucky. And you know, this is a center with no ac certainly not the style that she was used to in Contact between Todd and Julie would be severely restricted. They could exchange occasional emails, but even those were monitored or delayed and limited in content, and Thune calls were rare and heavily regulated between the two and Todd has spoken about adapting to prison routines early morning, structured days, physical fitness. He did serve as a chaplain's assistant inside this prison. But when he got out, somebody, I don't remember which interviewer asked him about his prison life and they said, you know, did you work in prison?

42:57 Because his wife said she worked the whole time in prison because it made the day go by fast. She said, I wanted to do as many jobs as I could do every day because I was focused on that and not the fact that I'm in prison. Right. Well, Todd said, screw that. I didn't work one day. He literally said, I was there to do my time, not to do chores. And that is if you've watched that show, that is Todd Chrisley up and down man. So they go to prison and the whole you know, family is shattered at this point. Now, Savannah Krussley, already a public figure, she would become the primary advocate and caretaker for this family. She assumed legal guardianship responsibility for younger brother Grayson and her niece Chloe, and Savannah has been open about struggling with multiple mortgages, legal fees, day to day parenting challenge, and the grief of her parents' absence.

43:58 I mean, they were her mom and dad, right and they're gone. At the same time, Chasing Grayson also stepped up in a lot of visible ways, and the family would navigate the public scrutiny and the loss of their primary income source after that show's cancelation. Honestly, though, through all of this, Savannah was a freaking hero, a total rock star. She never stopped advocating for her parents' release, and of course, on the inside, tied in Julie's legal team, they would pursue appeals and in twenty twenty three they actually got their sentences slightly reduced. Julie's release date was moved forward by about fourteen months and Tides by about two years, and the core convictions still stood and it still looked like they were going to be stuck there for a good long time. So the mons would turn into years and the family's advocacy efforts would gain momentum.

45:00 Savannah's relentless work behind the scenes combined with political developments that we're going to talk about, most notably a new president, would set the stage for a dramatic turning point. So, after more than two years of incarceration in a long fight for freedom, shock would come. In the spring of twenty twenty five, what many had viewed as nearly impossible, full exoneration and release from federal prison became reality through an unexpected and highly publicized presidential pardon. On May twenty seventh of twenty twenty five, President Donald Trump made a direct phone call to Savannah Chrisley. They made a little small talk, and then he told her this, that's a terrible thing.

45:49 It'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. Said, okay, we'll try getting it done at tomorrow soon. Give them I don't know them, but give them my regards and wish them, wish them a good life. Yes, thank you for bringing my parents. Yeah, well they were given a pretty harsh treatment. Based on what I'm hearing, pretty harsh treatment was your brother? Was your brother fighting also for this release? Right? Hey, I go to the university of Alabama and I the noise.

46:30 You speak, and that's the greatest presidential speak I've ever heard of. Mouth. Oh that's good. I was just there and I gave the commencement. What a great group of people. If you were in the audience, you have to be good. What a good school it was. And I love Alabama, you know, I love Alabama. It's that school is really that was very impressive when I was there. Yeah, I think I did a good job. I got a lot of good comments on that one. So that's good. I love uh, I love doing that with great young people. Got kicked out of cloud for defending you. Gee, I'm surprised because University of Alabama if we took a vote of getting ninety percent of the vote, man exactly, maybe more actually, But anyway, you keep fighting, congratulating your parents, adulations.

47:16 Savannah and Alice had a lot to do with this, and just congratulate your parents. And I hit it terrific people. That should not have happened. So and you just tied. They have good, good children. You no longer children, but I'll say it anyway. They have good children, don't they have? So there you hurt it. President Trump fully pardoning both of these people Now. The pardons were formally issued shortly thereafter. On May twenty eighth of twenty twenty five, Todd and Julie were released from those respective facilities. Todd left that prison camp in Pensacola, Florida, Julie leaves Lexington, Kentucky's prison camp, and after more than twenty eight months apart, the couple was finally able to reunite with their children in Nashville.

48:06 So the couple returns home as free citizens, their records cleared by the executive action of the President, and in the days in weeks that followed, Todd and Julie began the process of rebuilding. They gave interviews, they appeared in family press conferences, and they expressed a deep gratitude to their children, particularly Savannah, for never giving up. And Todd would speak about the lessons he learned in prison, the importance of faith, all the things you would expect, and they would quickly resume public life, and in the fall of twenty twenty five, they launched a new series called The Chrislies Back to Reality, which documented their adjustment after prison.

48:51 Now. The show offered viewers an intimate look at what they termed the new normal, navigating finances, family relationships, public perception, and the lingering effects of their time away. Savannah, Chase, and Grayson would also share their perspectives on holding the family together during the absence of their parents, and financially and professionally, the road ahead it was going to be difficult, to say the least. The couple faced the task of rebuilding income streams after years without that primary television platform, and they still had legal restitution obligations and past debts they would have to address. Yes, a presidential pardon forgives your prison sentence, but it doesn't forgive your debt. You still gotta pay that back. So to me, the Chrystally story, y'all, at its core, it's really a story of a modern American saga of ambition, fame, a fall from grace, and redemption.

49:51 Todd and Julie both rose from very modest roots. Through sheer determination and vision, they indeed built a massive brand, but that same ambition and public image also expose them to a lot of scrutiny and looking back, the Chrisly story offers some powerful lessons. It shows how quickly the fame and fortune can turn. It highlights the immense pressure of maintaining a public image while dealing with private struggles, and it reminds us that family loyalty matters, and it demonstrates the power of second chances. Now today, Todd and Julie are rebuilding. They've returned to public life with new projects, a deeper appreciation, it seems, for just the simple moments, and a marriage they describe as lighter and more focused than ever before. And the family. They continue to navigate the complex dynamics of family. And while they may look a little different now, they're not all that different. They just seem a little wiser, a little more battle testing, maybe a little more grounded. But the resilience that they have seems to remain intact. And the crystalies remind us that life is never a straight line. It's filled with success, failure, public judgment, private pain, and then the comeback. And whether you see this story as a cautionary tale of what

51:23 not to do or a story of redemption, the story is undeniably human. Remember it's not how many times you fall that counts how many times you get up. Thank you so much for listening. If you enjoy what I bring to you with Expose. Please consider supporting the show through Patreon, commercial free early releases. All kinds of other benefits are there. Speaking of which, if you've been following me for a while, you know I love my bed sheets and my comforter set, and let's face it, I get hot as hell when I'm sleeping, so I switched to bamboo. Everything, even myocase is bamboo. And I have never slept better in my life, y'all. This is no shit.

52:05 It's really a miracle for me because I've always struggled with sleep. I love my sheets, my comforter, and my pillow cases so much that I reached out to where I got them from Cozy Earth, and I told them, hey, I want to promote you on Exposed, and I need a special deal just for my listeners, and don't be cheap about it. And boy did they come through. Thirty percent off y'all at Cozy Earth just by using the code exposed at check out. That is a ton of savings. So go check them out cozyearth dot com. Use the code exposed at check out for thirty percent off and they have all kinds of stuff, y'all, not just bed sheets and pillowcases and comforters and all that they have, bathroom towels, pajama sets, all of it made out of bamboo and it's unbelievably comfortable and uh, I just can't describe it. Just got a cozyearth dot com thirty percent off using the code exposed to check out again. Thank you so much for listening, and until next time for exposed scandalous files of the elite, I'm your host, Jim Chapman.

53:11 Much love,