Julie Chrisley says that becoming parents to their granddaughter Chloe changed everything, not just how she and Todd Chrisley parented, but how they viewed the world around them. They “had to be better” raising “a child of color“.
“When we got Chloe … we had to be better,” Julie, 52, said on the July 8 episode of Chrisley Confessions 2.0. “We had to make sure that our circle expanded. We had to make sure that Chloe knew she was a child of color.
We had to make sure she knew what she came from.” Chloe, now 12, is the biological daughter of Todd’s son Kyle and his ex, Angela Johnson. She was legally adopted by Todd and Julie in 2016 during a time when Kyle was facing personal challenges. Julie shared that raising Chloe as a Black child required them to be intentional, mindful, and culturally aware in ways they hadn’t experienced before.
The emotional conversation surfaced as the Chrisley’s reflected on their recent time behind bars. Both Todd, 56, and Julie were convicted in June 2022 for bank fraud and tax evasion. Todd received a 12-year prison sentence, while Julie was sentenced to seven years. The couple also received 16 months of probation. They began serving time in January 2023 but were granted a full pardon by President Donald Trump in May 2025.
Their daughter Savannah Chrisley, 27, had long advocated for their release. “For the past two and a half years, I’ve done everything in my power to fight for my parents’ freedom and bring them home,” she said in a statement after the pardon. “This moment is the answer to countless prayers, and I am beyond grateful to President Trump for seeing the truth and restoring my family.”
While Savannah was relieved, she admitted her younger sister was hesitant to get too excited. “Chloe, I think, is still in shock,” she shared on NewsNation’s On Balance. “She doesn’t want to get her hopes up, because she feels like something bad is going to happen. But I’m excited to be going to get my dad and bringing him home to her. We’re excited.”
In a recent episode of Unlocked, Julie became emotional as she described how deeply painful it was to be separated from her children, especially Grayson, 19, and Chloe, who still rely on her day to day.
“For me, that was one of the most difficult things about being in prison because I pride myself on being a good mother,” she said. “I pride myself in always being there for my children, and to have a time where I couldn’t be there was, at some point, debilitating.”
Even though two of her kids, Savannah and Chase, 29, are adults, Julie said being present as a parent is essential no matter how old your children get.
“I know that Grayson and Chloe, especially, but [also] you and Chase, even though you’re adults, you still need your parents,” she said. “And I think that’s what people need to realize. That when you’re being sentenced [by] these judges, it was very easy to say, ‘Oh, there’s lots of people that can help them raise their kids.’ No.”
Photo Credit: Savannah Chrisley Instagram; Julie Chrisley Instagram