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Todd and Julie Chrisley were awarded $1 million from the state of Georgia as they settled a lawsuit on Wednesday, January 10. The reality stars had filed the case against Joshua Waites, the former Director of Special Investigations for the Georgia Department of Revenue. The win in the lawsuit came as the couple are currently in the middle of serving their prison sentences for bank fraud.
The lawsuit had alleged that the former director had “committed misconduct in connection with his investigation of the Chrisleys,” according to a press release obtained by Hollywood Life. The pair had filed the lawsuit shortly after they were indicted on the bank fraud charges.
With the Chrisleys being awarded $1 million, their lawyer Alex Little released a statement about how important this settlement was. “We have been saying for months that the criminal case against the Chrisleys was highly unusual and had real problems. This settlement is an encouraging sign. It’s nearly unprecedented for one arm of the government to pay money to defendants when another arm is fighting to keep them in jail,” the attorney said.
The couple’s appeal will be heard by the federal appeals court in Atlanta in April. Their daughter Savannah Chrisley had announced that she learned that the appeals court would hear her parents’ case in an Instagram video before Thanksgiving. In her caption, she explained why this was such a critical victory for her parents. “The briefs are written, and the panel may already be leaning towards a decision. Oral argument, therefore, is an opportunity to cement the panel’s decision in your favor, or perhaps your final chance to save your case!” she wrote.
Todd and Julie were both sentenced to prison after they were found guilty of bank fraud in June 2022. Todd was sentenced to 12 years in prison, while his wife was sentenced to seven years in prison. They both turned themselves in to their respective facilities in January 2023. Since starting their sentences, each of their respective release dates has moved up slightly.