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(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump told Savannah Chrisley in a phone call Tuesday that he plans to grant full pardons to her parents, reality television stars Todd and Julie Chrisley, who are serving federal prison sentences for tax evasion.
"Your parents are going to be free and clean," Trump said during the call from the Oval Office, according to a social media post by Trump's communications adviser Margo Martin.
Trump said he hoped to complete the pardons by Wednesday, telling Chrisley he didn't know her parents personally but wished them "a good life."
Savannah Chrisley traveling to Florida to pick up Todd Chrisley
Chrisley exclusively told NewsNation that Trump called her while she was walking into a grocery store.
"I just ran back to my car at that point," she told NewsNation's Leland Vittert in a phone interview Tuesday while traveling to Florida to pick up her father from prison.
Trump was joined for the call by his "pardon czar" Alice Johnson, whose sentence he commuted during his first term.
"Alice Johnson was the greatest appointment that President Trump could have ever done," Chrisley said.
Chase Chrisley speaks on pardons of Todd Chrisley, Julie Chrisley
Todd Chrisley has five children, two with his former wife — Lindsie and Kyle — and three with Julie Chrisley — Chase, Savannah and Grayson. On Tuesday, Chase Chrisley, 28, spoke out on his parents' pardons.
"I am grateful to God and extremely grateful to President Trump and his entire administration," Chase told the New York Post. "I’m beyond thankful to finally have my parents back home and my family together again!"
"Chrisley Knows Best" cast members Chase Chrisley, from left, Savannah Crisley, Julie Crisley and Todd Chrisley attend the NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment 2014 Upfront at the Javits Center on May 15, 2014, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
Savannah Chrisley attends the red carpet for Fox's "Special Forces: World's Toughest Test" at Fox Studio Lot on Sept. 12, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Reality TV personality Todd Chrisley visits Hallmark's "Home & Family" at Universal Studios Hollywood on June 18, 2018, in Universal City, California. (Photo by Paul Archuleta/Getty Images)
Julie and Todd Chrisley in the episode "Let's Talk About Sex, Grayson." (Photo by: USA Network/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
Kyle Chrisley, 33, also commented on the pardons, telling E! News he was "ecstatic."
"Truly. I just found out a little bit ago, and I still just can’t believe it," he said.
Lindsie Chrisley's lawyer, Musa Ghanayem, also released a statement to NBC News on Wednesday:
"When they make a pardon, sometimes presidents get it right, sometimes they get it wrong. This time, I think he got it right."
Todd Chrisley, Julie Chrisley convicted of tax evasion and bank fraud
The Chrisleys, stars of the USA Network reality show "Chrisley Knows Best," were convicted in 2022 on charges including tax evasion and bank fraud. Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison, while Julie Chrisley received seven years.
According to prosecutors at the time, the Chrisleys had submitted fake documents to banks and secured more than $30 million in fraudulent loans. Once that fell apart, they didn't pay back the loans and filed for bankruptcy.
While they were in bankruptcy, they started their reality show and “flaunted their wealth and lifestyle to the American public,” prosecutors wrote, and then hid the millions they made off the show from the IRS.
NBC News reported that, during their federal trial, prosecutors claimed the couple spent the money on luxury cars and travel.
Savannah Chrisley has publicly advocated for her parents' release, arguing their sentences were excessive.
She spoke at the Republican National Convention last July, where she asserted her parents were the victims of a “two-faced justice system,” echoing rhetoric used by Trump and his supporters to downplay his legal troubles.
Savannah Chrisley talks Trump pardoning her parents
Chrisley said her parents faced "huge Fourth Amendment violations" and prosecutorial misconduct. She cited instances in which an IRS agent allegedly had her father's face on a dartboard and called the family "the Trumps of the South."
During the call with Trump, Chrisley's brother Grayson spoke with the president about attending the University of Alabama, where Trump recently spoke. Her younger sister Chloe is "still in shock and doesn't want to get her hopes up," Chrisley said.
Todd Chrisley has been serving his sentence in Pensacola, Florida, and Julie Chrisley has been serving hers in Lexington, Kentucky.
The couple's 29th wedding anniversary was May 25, and Chrisley said her parents would have "a late wedding anniversary" celebration upon their release.
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