Let the cameras roll. Chrisley Knows Best is certainly not without drama, but its stars have been at the center of more controversies than a single reality show can handle.
Fans met Todd Chrisley, Julie Chrisley and their kids — Chase, Savannah and Grayson — when the series premiered on USA Network in March 2014. The businessman’s children from his first marriage to Teresa Terry — Lindsie and Kyle — also appeared on early seasons of the show.
However, the former real estate tycoon’s relationships with his older kids broke down as the family became more high-profile. The feuds soon became public knowledge and often played out for the world to see.
When Todd revealed in April 2020 that he was hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19, a social media user sent Lindsie a DM, which she shared via her Instagram Story. “Hi Lindsie!” the note read. “Did you see your Dad has Covid? I guess the good guys really do win in the end.”
The “Coffee Convos” podcast cohost fired back at the negative sentiment. “The audacity of some people blows my mind,” she retorted. “This is disgusting. My inbox is flooding with similar messages & I’m not here for it. Get right or get off my page.”
Lindsie took her reaction one step further, exclusively telling Us Weekly at the time, “I don’t want anything bad to happen to my father.”
Her attorney, meanwhile, added that the reality star “was very saddened to hear that her father was diagnosed with COVID. She does not feel happy he has the virus.” Todd, for his part, eventually recovered.
Although Lindsie wished her father well when he was sick, their relationship was not mended. Kyle, on the other hand, revealed in August 2019 that he and Todd had reconciled after years of tension.
“My mom [Julie] and dad raised me,” Kyle wrote via Instagram. “I haven’t been the best dad to [daughter] Chloe, I’ve had a problem with drugs, I’ve acted completely ridiculously, and through all that, they have stood by my side. Nine months ago, I went to my dad with an apology. His words were ‘I love you always, and you are forgiven’ and just like that, I was welcomed back into his life with open arms. I will be forever grateful for his love [and] graciousness.”
The Chrisleys’ drama only got more intense in June 2022, when Todd and Julie were convicted of tax evasion, bank fraud and conspiracy. Though the Chrisley family patriarch denied the allegations three years prior — claiming that an ex-employee set them up — Todd and Julie were later sentenced to 12 years in prison and seven years in federal prison, respectively.
Scroll through the gallery below to revisit all of the scandals the Chrisleys have been involved in during their time in the spotlight.
Credit: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
Chrisley Family Drama Through the Years: From Todd’s Feuds With His Kids to Lindsie’s Alleged Affairs
Let the cameras roll. Chrisley Knows Best is certainly not without drama, but its stars have been at the center of more controversies than a single reality show can handle.
Fans met Todd Chrisley, Julie Chrisley and their kids — Chase, Savannah and Grayson — when the series premiered on USA Network in March 2014. The businessman’s children from his first marriage to Teresa Terry — Lindsie and Kyle — also appeared on early seasons of the show.
However, the former real estate tycoon’s relationships with his older kids broke down as the family became more high-profile. The feuds soon became public knowledge and often played out for the world to see.
When Todd revealed in April 2020 that he was hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19, a social media user sent Lindsie a DM, which she shared via her Instagram Story. “Hi Lindsie!” the note read. “Did you see your Dad has Covid? I guess the good guys really do win in the end.”
The “Coffee Convos” podcast cohost fired back at the negative sentiment. “The audacity of some people blows my mind,” she retorted. “This is disgusting. My inbox is flooding with similar messages & I’m not here for it. Get right or get off my page.”
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Lindsie took her reaction one step further, exclusively telling Us Weekly at the time, “I don’t want anything bad to happen to my father.”
Her attorney, meanwhile, added that the reality star “was very saddened to hear that her father was diagnosed with COVID. She does not feel happy he has the virus.” Todd, for his part, eventually recovered.
Although Lindsie wished her father well when he was sick, their relationship was not mended. Kyle, on the other hand, revealed in August 2019 that he and Todd had reconciled after years of tension.
“My mom [Julie] and dad raised me,” Kyle wrote via Instagram. “I haven’t been the best dad to [daughter] Chloe, I’ve had a problem with drugs, I’ve acted completely ridiculously, and through all that, they have stood by my side. Nine months ago, I went to my dad with an apology. His words were ‘I love you always, and you are forgiven’ and just like that, I was welcomed back into his life with open arms. I will be forever grateful for his love [and] graciousness.”
The Chrisleys’ drama only got more intense in June 2022, when Todd and Julie were convicted of tax evasion, bank fraud and conspiracy. Though the Chrisley family patriarch denied the allegations three years prior — claiming that an ex-employee set them up — Todd and Julie were later sentenced to 12 years in prison and seven years in federal prison, respectively.
Scroll through the gallery below to revisit all of the scandals the Chrisleys have been involved in during their time in the spotlight.
Credit: Shutterstock (2)
Todd and Lindsie’s Feud Begins
The patriarch’s relationship with his eldest child has been strained since she eloped with Will Campbell in January 2012. Although he later forgave his son-in-law for not getting his approval before the wedding, Todd was not happy, telling E! News that Lindsie “should have never condoned that kind of disrespect.”
“I had a problem with the way the marriage started,” he elaborated. “Not just on Will’s side but on my daughter’s side as well. I don’t think that the marriage started out the way that it should have, and certainly not the way that a father would like to see a marriage start.”
Todd’s bond with Lindsie only deteriorated more from there, with her last appearance on Chrisley Knows Best airing in 2017 during season 5. He claimed in August 2021 that her issues with the family actually started because of her animosity toward Savannah.
“There was just some kind of emotional battle that Lindsie has had within herself and jealousy amongst her siblings,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “It started out with Savannah having way more social media followers, and then [she] wasn’t getting enough time on the show.”
Credit: Courtesy Kyle Chrisley/Instagram
The Custody Battle Over Kyle’s Daughter Chloe
Todd’s eldest son struggled with addiction after welcoming daughter Chloe with ex Angela Johnson in November 2012. The “Chrisley Confessions” cohost was awarded shared custody — alongside Johnson — of his granddaughter in 2013 after Kyle was arrested and charged with assault.
Kyle alleged in 2014 that his dad “stole” Chloe from him because her appearance on the reality show “would be good for his demographic.” However, Todd seemingly addressed the accusations via Twitter, writing, “My son Kyle is bipolar, he suffers from mental illness, he will struggle for life.”
Todd gained full custody of Chloe after Johnson was arrested in 2016 for allegedly defrauding Medicaid and food stamps.
Credit: Courtesy Kyle Chrisley/Instagram
Kyle’s Arrest
Kyle faced more legal troubles in May 2019 when he was arrested and charged with felony possession of methamphetamine after police found drugs in his car in Oklahoma. He also had a warrant in Georgia for death threats he allegedly made against his ex Alexus Whilby.
The district attorney opted to drop the drug charges against Kyle in Oklahoma. As for the case in Georgia, he was booked for terroristic threats and released on his own recognizance.
Credit: Invision/AP/Shutterstock
Todd and Julie’s Tax Evasion Case
The couple were charged with tax evasion, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States in August 2019. They surrendered to authorities and posted bond but denied wrongdoing at the time. Todd and Julie went to trial in May 2022 and were found guilty of 12 counts of tax evasion, bank and wire fraud and conspiracy.
Credit: Broadimage/Shutterstock (3)
Lindsie’s Alleged Affairs With ‘Bachelorette’ Alums
Lindsie claimed in a July 2019 police report that Todd and Chase “were going to release [a] sex tape involving her.” Her father subsequently alleged to E! News that the family had “tried to keep Lindsie’s extramarital relationships with Robby Hayes and Josh Murray [during her marriage to Campbell] private for her sake since August of 2016.”
Murray insisted that he and Lindsie had “been friends for years” amid the allegations, while Hayes said he “did not make a sex tape” with her. Instead, he claimed that they “got caught on [a] security camera.”
Lindsie’s attorney alleged that she had “been a constant target of lies, harassment and threats from her family and, as a result, has been distancing herself from the Chrisley family since 2017.”
Credit: Broadimage/Shutterstock
Todd and Julie’s Fraud Case Goes to Trial
Two years after the couple were charged with several counts of bank and wire fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy, Todd and Julie’s trial began in May 2022 in Atlanta. During the court hearing, the duo were accused of exaggerating their earnings to banks to allegedly borrow more than $30 million. The Chrisleys, however, claimed that their former employee Mark Braddock committed the crimes behind their backs and was therefore fired back in 2012.
In June 2022, a jury ruled that the twosome were guilty on all counts, which included five counts of bank fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of tax fraud. Julie, for her part, was previously accused of creating a fake credit report and false bank statements to rent a home, which led to an additional charge of one count of wire fraud and one count of obstruction of justice, according to The Tennessean.
Todd and Julie, who now face up to 30 years in prison, are planning to appeal the conviction, per a statement from their attorney. Their sentencing hearing is scheduled for a later date. Beverly Hills-based legal expert Jeffrey W. Steinberger, who is not affiliated with the case, told Us that the duo could be looking at “enormous jail time.”
Credit: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
Convicted of Fraud
Todd and Julie were convicted on tax evasion, bank fraud and conspiracy charges in June 2022. Though the couple didn’t agree with the ruling, the “Chrisley Confessions” podcast host said he was “praying” for the prosecutors and the judge.
Credit: AFF-USA/Shutterstock
Todd and Julie Will Spend Several Years in Prison
Five months after their conviction, the twosome were sentenced to several years in prison in November 2022. Todd received a 12-year sentence and Julie received a seven-year sentence. In January 2023, the pair reported to their respective prisons, with Todd surrendering at FPC Pensacola in Florida and Julie reporting to the Federal Medical Center in Lexington, Kentucky.