Julie Chrisley's sentence in bank fraud and tax evasion case overturned as judge orders re-sentencing

Reality TV star Julie Chrisley's sentence for bank fraud and tax evasion was rejected Friday by federal appeals judges, who ordered a lower court to re-sentence him on what the appeals panel called a “narrow issue.”

Julie Chrisley and her husband, Todd Chrisley, who became famous thanks to the show “Chrisley Knows Best” which chronicled the exploits of their close-knit family, were convicted in 2022 of conspiring to defraud community banks out of more than 30 million dollars in fraudulent loans. . The Chrisleys were also found guilty of tax evasion by hiding their income while displaying an extravagant lifestyle.

The couple's accountant, Peter Tarantino, was tried with them and was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States and willfully filing false tax returns.

A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the convictions of the Chrisleys and Tarantino in a ruling that found legal error only in the way the trial judge calculated Julie Chrisley's sentence holding her responsible for the entire bank fraud scheme. The appeals panel therefore sent his case back to the lower court for re-sentencing.

“We are pleased that the Court recognized that Julie's sentence was inappropriate, but we are obviously disappointed that it rejected Todd's appeal,” Alex Little, the couple's lawyer, said in an email message. He added that the Chrisley family was “hoping for more good news in the future”.

Before the Chrisleys became reality TV stars, they and a former business partner submitted false documents to Atlanta-area banks to obtain fraudulent loans, prosecutors said at trial. They accused the couple of spending lavishly on luxury cars, designer clothes, real estate and travel, and of using new fraudulent loans to pay off old ones. Todd Chrisley then filed for bankruptcy, according to prosecutors, forgiving more than $20 million in unpaid loans.

Julie Chrisley was sentenced to seven years in federal prison and Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in prison. The couple was also ordered to pay $17.8 million in restitution.

Their defense attorneys argued unsuccessfully on appeal that an IRS agent lied at trial when he testified that the couple still owed taxes and that prosecutors knowingly failed to correct this. false testimony. They also claimed that prosecutors did not present enough evidence to convict the Chrisleys of tax evasion and conspiracy, or that Julie Chrisley participated in bank fraud.

Tarantino's lawyer argued that the accountant was prejudiced by being tried with the Chrisleys. His request for a new trial was denied.

Appeals judges found only one error in the case. They ruled that the trial judge, during sentencing, held Julie Chrisley responsible for the entire bank fraud scheme that began in 2006. The panel ruled that neither prosecutors nor the trial judge trial court had cited “specific evidence demonstrating that she was involved in 2006.”

The panel found sufficient evidence linking her to fraud over several years beginning in 2007.

“We must vacate Julie's sentence so that the district court can address the specific question of the amount of loss attributable to Julie” so that her sentence can be recalculated, the appeals panel wrote.

Todd Chrisley, 56, is in a minimum security federal prison camp in Pensacola, Florida, with a release date of September 2032, while Julie Chrisley, 51, is in a facility in Lexington, Kentucky, and is expected to be released in July 2028. according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website.

Tarantino, 61, is being held at a minimum-security federal prison camp in Montgomery, Alabama, with a release date of August next year.