Todd and Julie are awaiting sentencing after being found guilty in their tax fraud case.
Savannah Chrisley is offering some insight into how her parents, Todd and Julie Chrisley, are navigating the dark cloud that hangs over the couple as they await sentencing in their fraud case.
The 25-year-old reality TV star spoke with ET's Deidre Behar and said her parents, the stars of the long-running reality series Chrisley Knows Best, are relying on their faith amid the turbulent times. In June, Todd and Julie were found guilty and convicted on all counts in their tax fraud trial that lasted nearly three weeks in Georgia federal court.
Todd was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States and tax fraud. Julie was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States, tax fraud and wire fraud.
The convictions, which came nearly three years after they were indicted by a federal grand jury for falsifying documents to secure more than $30 million in bank loans for personal use, could potentially land the pair behind bars for 30 years. Prosecutors in a sentencing memo recommended Todd serve 17 1/2 to nearly 22 years in prison and Julie be sentenced to 10 to 12 1/2 years in prison. According to CBS News, the Chrisleys' attorney suggested the range should be between eight and nine months.
But as they await sentencing, Savannah tells ET it's admirable how her parents have shown resilience through it all.
"They're pushing through. We're at a place where we put our faith in God. We definitely don't put our faith in the system," Savannah says. "I've never seen two people, my parents, be so steadfast in their faith and in prayer and just literally on their knees every morning praying. It's just so admirable, and that's kinda just my focus. Just watching them and still learning and growing from them in times like this, and just kinda staying strong through it all and knowing that, in the end, the truth will prevail. And it may get harder before it gets easier, but we have faith."
Savannah, who just launched a new podcast, Unlocked, admits it's not easy portraying strength during trying times. But she takes solace in having an outlet like her podcast where she can be her authentic self, no holds barred.
"I'm not gonna say, 'Oh, I'm amazing.' That's something I'm kinda shying away from. I'm so used to kinda just putting a happy face on," she says. "I think that's what happens when you've been on TV for 10 years, is you just learn to be good all the time, and I think that's where my podcast comes into play. It's OK to not be OK, and it's OK to be vulnerable and to work through your emotions as you're talking about them. And that's kinda the place that I'm at right now, just using my podcast as an outlet to be vulnerable, talk about everything going on in my life so that, at the end of the day, the truth always comes out and to just kinda be patient with myself."
There's only so much that can be covered on a reality TV series, and for as long as it's been on the air (10 seasons and counting) there's no denying that a podcast is where she can convey her raw emotions, versus a show that's edited down to 22 minutes after commercial breaks.
"One hundred percent and two, I think with our show it was always so funny and it never really hit deep on much and so I feel like throughout all the years, I had all these things bottled up that I never got to speak about," Savannah says. "And even when it comes to relationships, this last episode that I spoke about, the NBA player that I dated, that's just a hot mess, you know?"
She continued, "It's like, I was always the bad guy. I never got to tell my truth or what people did to me and now it's like, this is the truth 'cause -- not to bash anyone -- it's the truth, so if the shoe fits, wear it."
On her podcast, Savannah is also not shying away from addressing her mental health. She opened up about becoming reclusive over the summer and hitting a dark point in her life. A large part of it stems from her parents' trial, but also the hate directed at her.
"Obviously, this whole legal battle that's been spread across the news I have had to deal with it from a child's perspective and just the hateful comments on social media and people just having no grace or understanding or really educating themselves," she explained. "There are a lot of people who refuse to educate themselves and they're just going to believe the first thing they read. And for me, I'm not going to do that ... and for me, it was just so hard to see all the negativity when I know the people that are in my life and I know their hearts and I know the things that they are and are not capable of and it was really, really difficult to not be able to state our truth."
In an upcoming episode, Savannah will broach the topic of suicide.
"I just got to a really, really low point and I speak about this in my podcast that's going to air next Tuesday, about suicide and my own struggles with it," she says. "And it just kind of goes to show it doesn't matter how pretty things look on the outside and how great a life is, people still struggle. And when it comes to social media, you never know when that comment you left could be the last mean one that you leave."
Savannah reveals that therapy sessions, going on long walks (with a weighted vest, no less) and surrounding herself with friends is truly what pulled her out of that darkness. It was also a sheer determination to pick herself up and deal with that sadness head-on.
And when it comes to lingering anger she felt from seeing her parents struggle over the last couple of years, Savannah says she's taken her cue from her parents on how to deal with it.
"I commend my parents because they turned their anger into pure faith," she says. "For me, my anger, I've buried it. It comes out, but I'm working through it in therapy."
Listen to new episodes of Unlocked every Tuesday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, PodcastOne or your favorite podcast app. Watch the video episodes on YouTube on Savannah Chrisley's YouTube channel.
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