It’s no secret that ex-reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley weren’t content with the verdict they received in their finance-based court case last year. They were found guilty of bank fraud and more offenses in the summer of 2022, before being sentenced to years in prison. The Chrisley Knows Best alums (and their family) have since claimed their legal proceedings were negatively impacted by government errors, bias and more. With that, they’ve sought to appeal the case, and not much has been said about their attempt for some time. This week, however, their new lawyer clarified what’s going on with their retrial attempt.
The newest member of the Chrisleys’ legal counsel is Jay Surgent and, over the past several days, he’s released several statements on his clients’ behalf. He specifically slammed the prison conditions Julie and Todd Chrisley are facing as well as the latter’s rejected home confinement petition. When it comes to the pair’s appeal and how the process might progress, Surgent admitted that they “don’t know yet.” He also mentioned that he and his team “did our final filings” last week.
So the attorney, who sat down with People, seems to be indicating that he’s done what he can, at this point. With that, they’ll have to wait for the court to handle the proceedings on its end. There are a few different ways in which the process can play out, and the white collar crime specialist laid those out during his conversation with the trade:
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals can reverse the District Court, or they could remand the case back for hearings that should have been held that were not held during the course of this trial. We argued very vigorously that their constitutional rights have been violated, and that they basically were not given a fair hearing. It's all in black and white, actually.
Months ago, another lawyer for the Chrisley family – Alex Little – explained that he was “optimistic” about their chances of winning an appeal. He argued that the case was “marred by serious and repeated errors.” One specific claim he made, at the time, was in reference to the “government lying to jurors about what taxes the couple paid.” When Todd and Julie entered their prisons in January, Little reiterated his hope for a retrial. On that occasion, he asserted that the Georgia Department of Revenue initiated an “unconstitutional” search at the start of the case and referenced testimony from an IRS officer.
After the verdict in the case was made, Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years in prison and is serving that time in Pensacola, Florida’s Federal Prison Camp. Julie received seven years and at present, is incarcerated at Federal Medical Center Lexington, which is located in Kentucky. Before they reported to their respective facilities in January, they opened up (as much as they legally could) about the situation on their podcast. Sources also provided details, saying that the Chrisleys felt they were “targeted unfairly by the judge” because of their celebrity status.
Alleged details regarding the specifics of their prison stints have been major talking points as of late. Chase and Savannah Chirsley claimed their parents are suffering poor conditions while being behind bars and that Julie is allegedly facing down snakes. The latter also alleged that her mother was being treated worse than service dogs at her facility. That assertion prompted a response from the Federal Prison Bureau, which denied the allegations.
The Chrisleys, now more than ever, seem set on crafting a successful appeal. Whether that actually comes to fruition remains to be seen at this time. Still, Jay Surgent’s latest comments suggest they’re doing whatever possible to strengthen their case.
