Julie Chrisley’s Lawyers Reveal Shocking New Details of Her Life Behind Bars
This is the week Julie Chrisley will find out whether or not a judge will reduce her prison sentence, as she is set to attend an Atlanta court hearing on Wednesday, September 25. Among the pleas being made on her behalf by her legal team is that she has “aged” in prison and being incarcerated has impacted her health. Plus, they have revealed new details about her day-to-day life behind bars and a surprising skill she has learnt.
Ahead of the hearing, Julie’s attorneys filed a document arguing for a reduced sentence for their client. In the filing, the reality star’s lawyers detail their client’s time at the Federal Medical Center Lexington in Kentucky, where they say she has been “a model inmate.”
“Since the first day of her incarceration, Mrs. Chrisley has worked to better herself as an inmate and citizen and is poised to seamlessly re-enter society upon her release,” her attorneys, Alex Little and Zachary Lawson, said in the filing posted September 20, per the GazettExtra.
They continued, “She has worked continuously during her time as an inmate, including in the commissary, food service and laundry. Mrs. Chrisley currently works in two different positions in the facility. She also has taught classes to other inmates.”
The filing also claims that Julie, 51, has perhaps somewhat surprisingly received a license to operate a forklift and more than 40 certificates for completing various programs while locked up behind bars.
Julie has been serving a seven-year federal prison sentence after she and her husband, Todd Chrisley, were convicted in 2022 for bank fraud and tax evasion. However, in June, an appeals court accepted Julie’s appeal, and she is due in court on September 25 to hear the judge’s verdict on her resentencing.
In the latest filing, Julie’s lawyers note the impact the prison sentence has had on their client’s health. “In the 20 months Mrs. Chrisley has been incarcerated, she has aged, her health has further deteriorated, her minor children suffer from the absence of their mother, and her parents and mother-in-law are sicker,” they stated.
Julie and Todd’s daughter, Savannah Chrisley, also wrote a letter U.S. District Judge Eleanor L. Ross, where she said the past two years have been “unimaginably difficult.”
Savannah, who was given guardianship over her younger siblings Grayson (18) and Chloe (11), following her parents’ incarceration, wrote, “I beg you, Your Honor — please, send my mama home. I love Grayson and Chloe with all my heart, but no matter how much I provide for them, I know I can never truly give them what their mother can. I long for the day I can embrace my mother as a free woman again.”
“They are brilliant, beautiful souls with the potential to change the world, and I don’t want this world to break them,” Savannah added. “But I can’t do it alone. I need my mother. We need her… As a single woman running a one-income household, it often feels like no matter how hard I work, it’s never quite enough.”
The filing also included a letter from Grayson, who wrote, “The last two years of my life have been the hardest years of my life. My sister, Savannah, has stepped up and taken care of my sister and I, but as I’m sure you can understand, it is not the same as having your mama.”
Savannah’s letter also included some details as to Julie’s whereabouts. Julie has been out of the BOP’s custody since late August when she was transported from Kentucky to Atlanta for the upcoming hearing. Since then, she has been in the custody of the U.S. Marshals.
According to Savannah, her mom endured a 13-hour trip to Atlanta, which included having to “walk through a plane filled with men heckling her just to use the restroom at the back.”
“She chose to not eat or drink for the entire journey, just to preserve what little dignity she had left,” Savannah added. “Since then, she has been transferred from facility to facility, allowed outside for only an hour a day. The isolation and deprivation are taking their toll on her mentally and physically.”
Julie previously requested to attend the hearing remotely and later to be allowed to wear her civilian clothes in court. The judge denied both requests.