Todd and Julie Chrisley Say Real Life Is ‘Rougher’ Than ‘Prison Life’

Todd and Julie Chrisley say prison was easy compared to real life. The Chrisley Knows Best couple have been speaking about their separate jail stints since being pardoned.

“I’ve actually talked to a few of the women that I was in prison with that they’re already home, whatever,” Julie, 52, said during a recent episode of the Chrisley Confessions 2.0 podcast. “We all have this general consensus that — it’s kind of weird to even say it.”

Her husband, 56, added, “No, it’s not weird. Life is rougher than prison life.” He added that it’s “a sad thing to say.”

Todd famously spoke out while in prison about the horrible conditions he says he faced while incarcerated. He, however, noted previously he didn’t work while in prison. 

“It is so horrific, the conditions that you’re there for, but that’s from a physical standpoint,” he explained. “But from an emotional and psychological standpoint, it is harder dealing with day to day.”

Julie expressed a feeling of helplessness she experienced while in jail, saying she knew “that you don’t have any control” and “there’s very little you can do,” which changed her mindset while she served her time.

“People told me this when I first got there: you can’t live out there and in here at the same time,” she added. “Because it’ll literally run you crazy, and that’s the truth. The longer you’re there, the more removed you become to the world.”

The couple spent 28 months in prison for tax evasion and bank and wire fraud charges they were convicted of in 2022. President Donald Trump pardoned the reality TV stars in May, resulting in their release. 

On rediscovering their lives outside of prison, it hasn’t been easy. “You’ve been having to get back in the swing of taking control of everything,” Todd said to Julie “Running a house and making sure everything’s done the way it’s supposed to be done.”

Julie says adjusting to sleeping now that she’s home hasn’t been easy. “I went to prison for 28 months. I never had trouble sleeping. Maybe, because I wasn’t fighting with everybody,” Todd said. “Let me tell you something, the members of my mob — otherwise known as the Chrisley Clan — they’re the ones who have kept me awake all these years.”