A federal case against Todd and Julie Chrisley, who are on trial for bank and tax evasion, is currently underway in Atlanta. On Tuesday, Assistant US Attorney Annalise Peters said in her opening statement that Todd and Julie Chrisley lived an extravagant, reality TV-worthy lifestyle that was built on lies, expounding that the couple “lied through their teeth” to swindle community banks out of $30 million in loans. In turn, Todd Chrisley’s attorney Bruce H. Morris tried to explain that much of their show Chrisley Knows Best is fake, being that “it’s part of the sizzle.”
Peters alleges Todd Chrisley purposely targeted small banks, believing smaller branches would be less scrupulous. He filed for bankruptcy in 2012, wiping away $20 million in loan debt. However, Peters further alleges the couple then actively hid millions made from their reality show, in which, from 2013 to 2016, the pair earned $6 million. Julie Chrisley is charged with wire fraud for sending alleged false bank statements and a credit report to rent a home in California for $13,000 a month in 2014. The Chrisley’s accountant Peter Tarantino is also being charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and two counts of willfully filing false tax returns. In Tarantino’s defense, his attorney claims his client failed the CPA exam many times over 20 years, was not qualified to have taken on the Chrisleys and was “in over his head,” but not a criminal. Todd and Julie Chrisley could face up 30 years each in jail for multiple counts of tax and fraud charges.
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The United States vs. The Chrisleys
Will this be a case of the lifestyles of the rich and infamous? There certainly is enough finger-pointing going around, especially towards the Chrisleys. For her part, prosecutor Peters argues that from 2007 to 2012, the family’s business was doing well, but the couple spent more than what they made, burning through money on luxury cars, designer clothes and a lifestyle outside their budget.
Morris argues in his opening statement that the Chrisleys were the victims of a man named Mark Braddock, who took advantage of Todd and was the one who did all the defrauding. Morris stated that Todd did not graduate from high school and was quietly flipping houses until Braddock helped him gain clients like Fannie Mae, raking in millions. He added that Braddock created a secret fund and stole money from Chrisley Asset Management and that Braddock wanted to be like Todd, going as far as forging Todd’s signature on many documents. In a 2019 Instagram post, Todd Chrisley stated Braddock bugged their phones and threatened employees with violence if they spoke of his actions.
Peters admitted in her opening statement that Braddock was a fraudster and was offered immunity for his participation. Furthermore, he admitted to all his crimes as well as specific instances of fraud committed by the Chrisleys, which was backed up with evidence. Peters added that the couple continued to commit fraud even after cutting all ties with Braddock. The trial is expected to last four weeks.
