Todd and Julie Chrisley still have not spoken to one another after reporting to federal prison.
“They don’t get to speak. It’s been two years, and they haven’t spoken a word to each other,” their daughter Savannah Chrisley, 27, confirms to PEOPLE exclusively. “They’ve been together almost 30 years, and they’ve never gone a day in their life without being with one another. That’s been a challenge. That should never happen.”
Todd, 55, and Julie, 52, both reported to prison in January 2023 to serve a combined 19-year sentence for bank fraud and tax evasion. The longtime couple is working on appealing their sentence, which was reduced in September 2023 by nearly two years.
Though their children have been able to make frequent visits to their respective facilities and speak with them through calls and emails, Todd and Julie have not found a way to communicate, themselves.
“The Bureau of Prisons says they strive to keep families together. That’s what they love to quote. That is so far from the truth,” says the Unlocked with Savannah Chrisley podcast host, who is now a prison reform activist.
“They make it almost impossible for you to communicate with loved ones. They make it almost impossible to visit,” Savannah claims. “They don’t make anything easy. There should never be a time where they keep them from communicating, and they do. They interfere with emails, they interfere with mail. There was mail theft and fraud at my dad’s facility that I’m still not going to allow that person to get away with.”
Savannah, who is working on getting President Donald Trump to pardon her parents’ case, also says, “Now that I have worked with President Trump’s team, I’m bringing all of this to his awareness, and it sucks.”
“It sucks that my parents are going through what they’re going through but we’re going to take this and make something great out of it,” she adds. “And in the end, the government will not win.”
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In addition to working on getting their case pardoned, Savannah says they “have filed another appeal when it comes to my mom,” whose appeal was initially granted due to insufficient evidence before a judge ultimately upheld her original sentencing.
For now, the Special Forces alum will continue to cherish what time she does get to have with her parents as she continues to fight for their freedom.
“I try to go as much as possible [to visit them]. Obviously, when Chloe’s in school, it’s a little bit harder,” she says of her younger sister, whom she is currently caring for alongside her brother Grayson. “During the summer, I feel like we were there every weekend, at one or the other. And then there’ve been times to where they’ve restricted my dad’s visits, or some random stuff happens. … I try to visit them as much as possible. I mean, once, twice a month. But I try to go, like I said, as much as I can.”
When the Chrisley Knows Best alum does get to see her parents, it’s “the greatest thing ever. We just catch up on so much,” she says.
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“I will say, as much as we enjoy it and love it, it’s also really hard leaving, because you know you’re leaving them there. That’s the tough part, turning your back and walking away, and knowing that they’re not coming with you,” she continues. “I have friends who I’ve met that their family members are in there, and they’re coming out of prison, and you see these reunification videos. And you’re like, ‘All right, my day’s coming. My day is coming.'”
Savannah adds, “Chloe, she saw all the January Sixers get pardoned on TV, and she was like, ‘Is it our turn next?’ And that’s what I have to fight for. I have to fight for a little girl that’s asking, ‘When is it our turn?’ ‘When is it mom and dad’s turn to come home?’ And when I look at her, I know that’s my only job right now, is to get them home.”
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