Courtesy Julie Chrisley/Instagram
Julie, Savannah Chrisley Open Up About How Chloe, 10, Is Coping With Prison Sentences: ‘She Listens’
Hard times. Julie Chrisley revealed granddaughter Chloe Chrisley is seeing “therapists” following her and husband Todd Chrisley’s respective seven and 12-year prison sentences during an appearance on Savannah Chrisley’s “Unlocked” podcast.
“She’ll put on her headphones and act like she is listening to something when in reality nothing’s on,” Savannah, 25, explained, adding that her niece is listening “more than you think” during the Tuesday, November 29, episode.
Chloe, 10, is the biological daughter of Todd and ex-wife Teresa Terry’s son Kyle Chrisley. Kyle, 31, shares Chloe with ex Angela Johnson. Todd and Julie have had custody of Chloe since 2016 amid Kyle’s struggle with addiction.
Savannah acknowledged that Chloe is aware of her adoptive parents’ “legal issues” and has been “dealing with it in her own way.”
“And with the help of therapists,” Julie, 49, added, calling Chloe her “daughter,” despite not being her biological mother.
“Every child that has been adopted has biological parents,” the Chrisley Knows Best matriarch said. “That doesn’t mean that we aren’t her parents. She is ours. She is our daughter. She is not our granddaughter. She is our daughter, which makes her your sister.”
The South Carolina native acknowledged that family is who you “choose it to be,” adding, “It’s who love you like a family should love you.”
Todd, 53, and Julie were found guilty on all counts of bank and wire fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy during a June 7 court hearing in Atlanta. On November 21, the husband and wife were sentenced to 12 and seven years in prison, respectively, In Touch confirmed at the time. In addition to their prison sentence, both Todd and Julie both received 16 months of probation.
While the reality TV stars are behind bars, Savannah revealed that she would have “custody” of Chloe and younger brother Grayson Chrisley during a November 21 episode of “Unlocked.”
“That’s the hardest part is me trying to navigate how you teach two younger children who aren’t fully developed yet and how to get them to understand the circumstances,” she said about Chloe and her little brother, 16. “That’s a really, really difficult thing.”
As for what’s ahead, Todd and Julie have an “appeal … planned,” the couple’s lawyer told Us Weekly in June 2022 following their guilty verdict.
Julie said she never “intentionally” hurt anyone with her actions and thought their sentencing was overly harsh.
“I think about the situation that we’re dealing with right now, and I’m thinking about I’ve never gone out here and hurt a soul,” she said on the “Unlocked” podcast on November 29. “I have never gone out here and intentionally tried to do anything that I wasn’t supposed to do, and look where I’m standing right now. How is that right?”
Savannah agreed with her mother and thought that the justice system “failed” and it “tears families apart.”
“It all goes down to us being in the public eye and someone wanting to prove a point. And it’s honestly sad,” the Growing Up Chrisley star continued. “At this point, I feel like, for me, I’ve kinda become numb to it but that numbness has turned to anger, to where now, it’s just like I’m not giving up. There’s no other option.”
