Reality TV star Julie Chrisley is facing a resentencing by a federal judge following an appeals court’s decision to issue a new sentence for her conviction on bank fraud and tax evasion charges. Julie Chrisley and her husband, Todd Chrisley, well-known for their show “Chrisley Knows Best,” were found guilty by a jury in 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks through over $30 million in fraudulent loans and tax evasion by concealing their income.
Their accountant, Peter Tarantino, was also on trial with the couple and was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and submitting false tax returns. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the convictions of the Chrisleys and Tarantino but identified a legal error in how Julie Chrisley’s sentence was calculated, leading to the case being sent back to the lower court for resentencing.
Federal prosecutors have recommended maintaining Julie Chrisley’s original seven-year sentence, whereas her defense team has requested a maximum five-year sentence, highlighting the challenges her two youngest children have been facing in her absence. Before their reality TV fame, the Chrisleys and a former business partner presented false documents to Atlanta banks to secure illicit loans, with prosecutors claiming they spent extravagantly on luxury items like cars, clothes, and travel, using new fraudulent loans to cover previous debts. Todd Chrisley later declared bankruptcy, leaving over $20 million in unpaid loans.
Julie Chrisley had initially been sentenced to seven years in federal prison, and Todd Chrisley received a 12-year sentence, along with a $17.8 million restitution order. The couple appealed various aspects of their convictions and sentences, while Tarantino aimed to have his conviction overturned for a new trial.
The appeals court determined that an error occurred in the sentencing, as Julie Chrisley was held accountable for the entire bank fraud scheme from 2006 without clear evidence of her involvement during that specific year, although there was enough proof linking her to fraud activities from 2007 onwards. Todd Chrisley, 56, is currently serving time in a minimum-security federal prison camp in Florida and is expected to be released in September 2032, while Julie Chrisley, 51, was previously in a Kentucky facility. Peter Tarantino, 62, is in an Atlanta halfway house and is scheduled for release in March as per the prison agency’s records.