Todd Chrisley recounted the emotional moment he learned he had been pardoned by President Donald Trump, detailing the tearful phone call with his daughter Savannah that changed everything.
“I was crying, and I said, ‘Is it true?’ And she [Savannah] started crying,” Chrisley recalled on the “Hang Out With Sean Hannity” podcast.
The “Chrisley Knows Best” star said he was returning from the prison library when a corrections officer caught up to him, revealing he had been pardoned and would be going home within hours.
“I was so overwhelmed, something just caused me to freeze,” he recalled.
Chrisley said his daughter confirmed the news, adding that the president had called her as she was leaving a Sam’s Club store.
At that point, her focus had become getting her father and arranging for someone to pick up her mother, Julie, who had also been convicted on federal charges of bank fraud and tax evasion.
“She said, ‘I’m trying to get the plane lined up now,'” Chrisley continued, adding that he had instructed Savannah to send her brothers to pick up Julie.
At the time, Savannah had spent years leading the public fight to free her parents, becoming the family’s most visible advocate as her parents served a combined 19-year prison sentence.
The couple was pardoned by Trump in May 2025 and walked out of prison after serving about 2.5 years. They have always maintained their innocence.
When speaking to reporters, Savannah previously claimed that her parents’ pardon “literally came out of nowhere.”
“I was in such shock and awe that the president himself took the time to tell me my family is coming back together,” she said.
Chrisley quipped that prison staff members were relieved to learn of his pardon since he and his family had caused such a stir about alleged corruption.
“Even though they were Democrats, they loved President Trump that day because he was getting rid of one of their biggest problems, and that was me.”
