Todd and Julie Chrisley Speak out on Custody Battle Drama

Todd and Julie Chrisley are facing a potential custody battle over their daughter Chloe, following their recent fraud conviction sentencing, and the pair have now spoken out about the recent drama. Chloe is the daughter of Kyle Chrisley — Todd’s son from a previous relationship — and his ex Angela Johnson. Todd and Julie adopted Chloe after Kyle and Johnson both ran into serious legal trouble.

After the news that Todd and Julie and been sentenced to prison terms, Johnson spoke with TMZ and told the outlet that she is actively working to regain custody of Chloe. In a new statement shared with PEOPLE, the couple’s family law attorney, Jessica Doyle, said, “Todd and Julie are saddened by the unfortunate and misleading narrative currently being portrayed in the media regarding Chloe.” Doyle, who helped the Chrisleys through their adoption process, went on to criticize Johnson’s claims as “simply not legally correct or even valid.”

“I handled the formal adoption of Chloe by Todd and Julie Chrisley,” said Doyle. “Angela Johnson’s parental rights were terminated when she voluntarily surrendered her parental rights to Todd and Julie Chrisley on March 24, 2017. She has had no contact with the minor child since 2015.” The possible custody battle news comes weeks after the former Chrisley Knows Best stars were sentenced for bank fraud and tax evasion charges. Todd was sentenced to 12 years in prison, while Julie will serve seven years. Both will also be expected to serve 16 months of probation.

Ahead of the sentencing, Julie sat down for a conversation with the couple’s daughter Savannah on her Unlocked podcast. In the episode, which was shared after the sentencing, the pair discussed social media comments from trolls who refused to acknowledge Chloe as the daughter. In response, Julie said, “Every child that has been adopted has biological parents. That doesn’t mean that we aren’t her parents. She is ours. She is our daughter. She is not our granddaughter. She is our daughter, which makes her your sister.”

Julie later went on to point out that Chloe sees Savannah “as her big sister,” rather than an aunt, and stated: “If you ask her, she will tell you, ‘Savannah is my sister. Grayson is my brother. Chase is my brother.’ That’s the house she is growing up in. So for people to say that, it just kills [me.]” At this time, Savannah appears to have indicated she may have custody of Chloe and 16-year-old Greyson when her parents report for their prison sentences.