Convicted reality tv stars pardoned by Donald Trump seemingly because shared associates between both parties.

Question

Convicted reality tv stars pardoned by Donald Trump seemingly because shared associates between both parties.

asked 2 days ago in General Factchecking by quetzal_starzak Newbie (280 points)

Todd and Julie Christley, reality TV stars convicted of fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States were pardoned by Donald Trump after their daughter personally appealed to members of Trump's family for her parents release and several people who previously worked on the the Christley's show, "Christley Knows Best", and who were associated with Trump in the past worked to get them pardoned. This included the lawyer Brett Tolman who previously helped win a pardon for Charles Kushner, the father of Trump's son-in-law.

Source:

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/todd-julie-chrisleys-pardons-came-intervention-daughter-rcna209439

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/todd-julie-chrisleys-pardons-came-intervention-daughter-rcna209439

2 Answers

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epoll280 · Answer 1 · 2025-06-01T19:08:20+0000

It does appear that the Chrisleys were pardoned by Trump after a personal appeal by their daughter, and several other pardons have been given out for similar fraud-related crimes. There is a quote from an assistant U.S. attorney in the linked article that says “Clearly, the White House is peddling influence and will pardon anyone who fits the ‘weaponization’ narrative or who has something to offer", which seems to legitimize your claim. A couple of business owners from New York have also been pardoned after being convicted for willfully employing a thrice-convicted felon, which further supports the speculation that these pardons are personally motivated given Trump's own conviction.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/01/chris-christie-trump-pardons-00379145

https://www.justice.gov/pardon/clemency-grants-president-donald-j-trump-2025-present

Jkowalewski · Answer 2 · 2025-06-01T20:12:12+0000

While President Trump has not explicitly come out and stated that he pardoned Todd and Julie Christley because of shared beliefs it is congruent with his past pardons. Julie has even gone on record to say that she and her husband fully associate with Trump and are sympathetic to his cause. It's likely he pardoned this celebrity couple as a way of showing allegiance to wealthy celebrities as Trump himself faced several felonies tied with with tax evasion and leaking of confidential documents.

Source:

https://apnews.com/article/julie-chrisley-todd-trump-pardons-federal-prison-9c508547bf5f6d57ae20f38c6821cecd

Convicted reality tv stars pardoned by Donald Trump seemingly because shared associates between both parties.

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