Reality television stars Todd Chrisley and Julie Chrisley claim that the biological mother of their 10-year-old adopted daughter has no rights, according to Entertainment Tonight.
The Chrisleys adopted their granddaughter, Chloe Chrisley, in 2017. The couple claimed during their podcast, Chrisley Confessions, on Dec. 14 that her biological mother, Angela Johnson, has no parental rights.
Johnson told TMZ that she planned to file for full custody after the stars of Chrisley Knows Best were both convicted of bank and tax fraud last month. They were both sentenced to several years in prison, and Johnson wants custody. She said she had been trying to get custody for years, but it was made more difficult after the Chrisleys moved from Georgia to Tennessee. Their son Kyle Chrisley is Chole’s father and lost custody in 2016 due to drug addiction. Johnson was arrested a year later after she falsified an application for Medicaid.
Todd said that he and his wife will decide who Chloe’s caregiver will be “if and when the time comes.”
“It’s ironic that her biological mother would come forward now when she has not been in her life since 2015,” he said. “Angela Johnson surrendered her parental rights in March of 2017, and we never heard from her again. Chloe was legally adopted by myself and by Julie. She is legally our child. We will be the ones who decide, if and when the time comes, as to who will be her caregiver.”
“Angela Johnson, she literally surrendered her rights to her child. She did this in front of a judge. Just so the record is very, very clear, Angela Johnson has no rights to Chloe. Her rights were terminated. She has been legally adopted.”
Todd went on to say he tried to help Johnson and provided her with housing when she was homeless, but Johnson failed to pay the $258 HOA fee needed to maintain the condo he’d bought for her. He also claimed that when she had joint custody of Chloe, she rarely showed up to pick her up because she had no vehicle.
“Angela didn’t have a car that would get her back and forth. We bought her a car, a Toyota Prius, and gave it to her free and clear for her to be able to meet Julie every other week in Commerce, which was halfway, Commerce, Georgia. She wouldn’t show up half the time. She would never even call and tell us that she wasn’t showing up.”
Todd went on to say Johnson’s lack of responsibility led them to pursue the adoption. He added that Johnson was “trying to squeeze out five minutes of fame” by filing for custody of Chloe.
“What she needs to do is spend more time trying to find a better wig and less time trying to go out here and get more time on the camera.”
The Chrisleys will begin their prison sentences on Jan. 17. Todd was sentenced to 12 years at the Federal Prison Camp in Pensacola, Florida and Julie was sentenced to seven years at the Federal Correctional Institution in Marianna.
Todd also threatened Johnson during the podcast and said if she continued to seek custody of her daughter, they would release her text messages.
“I know you listen to this, Angela. What you need to do is understand that I have retained every text message, and so does Julie, with any communication that we’ve ever had with you,” he said. “We have not released those, but if we need to we will.”