Reality TV star Julie Chrisley sentenced to 7 years in prison for bank fraud and tax evasion

ATLANTA (AP) – A federal judge sentenced Julie Chrisley to seven years in prison on Wednesday for her conviction on Charged with bank fraud and tax evasionand rejected the reality TV star's request for a shorter prison sentence than originally imposed.

Chrisley and her husband Todd Chrisley rose to fame through their show “Chrisley Knows Best,” which followed their close-knit family and extravagant lifestyle. A jury in 2022 found her guilty of conspiring to defraud community banks of more than $30 million in fraudulent loans. The Chrisleys were also found guilty of tax evasion by concealing their income.

A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in June confirmed the convictions of the Chrisleys However, the trial judge found an error of law in calculating Julie Chrisley's sentence by holding her responsible for the entire bank fraud. The appeals panel remanded her case to the lower court for re-sentencing.

Julie Chrisley's lawyer Alex Little asked the judge to reduce his client's sentence to no more than five years, arguing that she was only a minor player in the crimes and that her “isolated offenses” were “dramatic mistakes.” He also noted that during her 20 months in prison so far, she has behaved well and taken advantage of opportunities for enrichment, obtaining more than 70 certificates.

In a court document, Little argued that Chrisley's two youngest children were struggling to “cope with everyday life” due to their mother's absence.

Federal prosecutor Annalise Peters urged the judge to extend the seven-year sentence, arguing that prosecutors were cautious in charging the Chrisleys, that Julie Chrisley was a “central part” of a fraudulent scheme and that she had not apologized, shown remorse or admitted wrongdoing.

Chrisley's good behavior in prison cannot make up for an “11-year journey of fraud and fraud,” Peters said.

Peters said she sympathized with Chrisley's family, but said their suffering was “a natural consequence of the defendant's criminal decisions.”

Chrisley, dressed in a navy blue prison uniform and with her formerly blonde hair now dark brown, addressed the judge.

“I apologize for my actions and for what brought me to where I am today,” she said, later adding that her time in prison was “the most difficult time of my life” and had been hard on her family.

“I can never repay my children for what they had to go through and I am sorry for that,” she said.

Before the Chrisleys became reality TV stars, they and a former business partner filed false documents with Atlanta-area banks to obtain fraudulent loans, prosecutors said during their trial. They accused the couple of spending heavily on luxury cars, designer clothes, real estate and travel, and taking out new fraudulent loans to pay off old ones. Prosecutors said Todd Chrisley then filed for bankruptcy, leaving behind more than $20 million in unpaid loans.

U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross said she took into account Chrisley's age, medical condition and the fact that she cared for young children and elderly parents in her original sentencing. Ross said she imposed a sentence that was below guidelines for Chrisley's crimes and situation and below what prosecutors had asked for. This departure from guidelines was not based on the amount of damages or the number of years Chrisley was involved in the case, so her sentence will not change, Ross said.

The judge noted that many of the people she sent to prison have children and most do not have the resources or support system the Chrisleys have.

“It makes me sad every time I see children going through this,” Ross said, later adding that she always reminds herself, “I am not the one who made the decision to put the children in this situation.”

Two of Chrisley's adult children, Savannah and Chase, attended the hearing. Savannah Chrisley, the spoke out in favor of Donald Trump’s presidential candidacy at the Republican National Convention in July, told reporters outside the courthouse that the prosecution and conviction of her parents was politically motivated.

“This is what happens when a judge is appointed by Obama,” she said as her mother was led out of the courtroom by U.S. Marshals. Ross was appointed judge by then-President Barack Obama and took office in November 2014.

She said her mother would appeal the new ruling.

Todd Chrisley is serving a 12-year prison sentence. The couple was originally supposed to pay $17.8 million in damages, but Ross said Wednesday the amount is now $4.7 million.

Todd Chrisley, 56, is incarcerated at a minimum-security federal prison in Pensacola, Florida. His release date is September 2032, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website. Julie Chrisley, 51, was incarcerated at a facility in Lexington, Kentucky, and is expected to return there.