Todd Chrisley Slams US Over World-Leading Incarceration Rate
In a stunning turn of events, reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley were granted presidential pardons, leading to their release from federal prison after serving over two years of their respective sentences. The couple, known for their show Chrisley Knows Best, were convicted in 2022 on charges of bank fraud and tax evasion. Their daughter, Savannah Chrisley, played a pivotal role in advocating for their release. More recently, Todd crashed Savannah’s podcast to discuss how the U.S. leads the rest of the world in incarceration rates. Here’s what he said.
Todd Chrisley called out the US for being the No. 1 country in incarceration rates
In 2022, reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley were convicted on multiple federal charges, including conspiracy to commit bank fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit tax evasion. The couple was found to have defrauded community banks in Georgia out of more than $36 million by submitting false financial documents to secure loans, which they used for luxury purchases and to repay previous fraudulent loans. Additionally, they were convicted of evading taxes by failing to file returns for several years and concealing income. Todd was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison. Julie received a seven-year sentence.
The couple began serving their sentences in January 2023. Todd served time at a minimum-security federal prison camp in Pensacola, Florida. And Julie served at a facility in Lexington, Kentucky. On May 28, 2025, President Donald Trump pardoned the couple.
In June 2025, Todd crashed Savannah Chrisley’s podcast, Unlocked from PodcastOne. He discussed the U.S. incarceration rates and his stance on the prison system.
“I believe in prison!” he said. “I’m not sitting here saying to abolish prisons. But, at the end of the day, we incarcerate more individuals in the United States of America than any other country in the world. We then have the highest recidivism rate of anyone else in the world. So, if we are the No. 1 country of incarceration, should we not be the No. 1 country in lowering recidivism? But, yet, we’ve got the highest.”
Todd Chrisley called out Democrats for asking Donald Trump for presidential pardons
While visiting Savannah Chrisley’s podcast, Todd Chrisley called out members of the Democratic party who now want presidential pardons from Donald Trump.
“This group of Democrats yesterday, they posted a thing about our party,” he said. “And they said, ‘Dear Mr. President, can you help so-and-so and so-and-so. And I went back, and I said, ‘Who did you vote for?’ Don’t start coming begging for a pardon now when you damn ran him in the ground, talked all this mad s***.”
Guest star Lynne Patton, the White House director of minority outreach, noted that many Democrats called for Trump’s imprisonment.
“Who’s ever heard of such a thing in this country that we’re locking up our presidents!” Todd continued.
The couple’s lawyer has been flooded with calls since the pardon
Jay Surgent, a partner at Weiner Law Group LLP, was one of Todd and Julie Chrisley’s attorneys. He told The New York Post that since the Chrisleys’ pardon, his phone has been ringing nonstop.
“My business has been great,” Surgent said. “I’m looking at eight major cases that came in from across the United States by the sheer fact that my name was mentioned many times with the Chrisleys. I cannot believe what my phone looked like after they got out.”
Surgent noted that once Todd and Julie were pardoned, he received up to 500 emails daily. However, he can’t work magic. And he doesn’t expect Donald Trump to hand out pardons to just anyone.
“Most of the stuff is people that are unknown,” he said of those who reached out to him for help.
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