Julie Chrisley Hopes For ‘Substantially Reduced’ Prison Sentence Reveals Her Lawyer
Locked-up reality star Julie Chrisley might not be able to spend Valentine’s Day with her husband, Todd Chrisley, but she may still have a reason to celebrate.
The Chrisleys are serving lengthy prison sentences after being found guilty of bank and tax fraud in 2022. Todd is doing a ten-year stint (reduced from 12) at FPC Pensacola, Florida, while Julie is serving a five-year sentence (reduced from seven) at FMC Lexington, Kentucky.
According to the couple’s attorney, Jay Surgent, Todd and Julie are not allowed to communicate with one another, even on Valentine’s Day. He told TMZ this is because inmates aren’t permitted to get in touch while in different federal prisons.
Surgent said the rule makes no sense, as Todd and Julie pose no security risk. As previously reported, Todd has been outspoken about the conditions of FPC Pensacola, making claims of mistreatment of inmates, blackmail attempts, and general corruption.
Despite the unfortunate Valentine’s Day news, Julie might have other reasons to celebrate. On the latest episode of the Unlocked podcast, hosted by Todd and Julie’s daughter, Savannah Chrisley, the couple’s other attorney, Alex Little, shared an update regarding possible early release.
When talking about the couple’s upcoming appeal hearing, which was postponed until the week of April 15, Little said there was a “slim chance” they would be going home after opening arguments. But he did say he hoped they would be granted “bail.”
However, when it comes to Julie, Little said she is in a “different situation” due to alleged “errors” involving her original sentencing. Regardless of the results of the appeal hearing, Little said he expects Julie’s sentence to be dramatically decreased.
“If she is re-sentenced in the summer or the fall of next year, I think her sentence should be substantially reduced,” he added. He went on to say that if Julie was given a three-year sentence, she could be home by “some time next year.”
“That’s not out of the question,” he continued (per People). “And I think the hard part when you talk to clients and talk to families about things like that is, that is an option on a spectrum of options. And so you don’t want to give people false hope. You want to be realistic; that is certainly an option.”
Little also mentioned the First Step Act and how it would “for sure” apply to Julie. The bill, which was signed into law in 2018, aims to cut unnecessarily long federal sentences and improve conditions in federal prison.
“Again, we don’t know whether the judge would actually apply it in a way to reduce her sentence,” he continued. “We think it should if the judge would have followed the guidelines. And that could happen, you know, this year, early next year.”
The couple already had their sentences reduced last year. Todd is set to leave FPC Pensacola on January 22, 2033, two years earlier than his original 12-year sentence. Meanwhile, Julie is scheduled to be released from FMC Lexington on October 19, 2028, 14 months shorter than her original seven-year sentence.
