Case Against Joshua Waites up in the Air
Has the Chrisley family settled their lawsuit against a former Georgia tax investigator? Learn more about why they sued him and what happened.
The Chrisley family had one hell of a 2019. As lovers of the reality stars know, Todd and Julie Chrisley had been indicted on multiple counts of tax evasion and fraud that summer after the Georgia Department of Revenue accused the couple of falsifying financial institution statements in order to avoid paying just about $2 million in state taxes.
Todd and Julie, who left Atlanta for Nashville in early 2016, all the time maintained their innocence, and settled the matter (or so that they concept) two months later once they agreed to pay round $110,000. But the Chrisleys were livid that their title had been dragged thru the mud, so they determined to file a lawsuit against the tax investigator who treated their case.
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The Chrisley circle of relatives's lawsuit against Joshua Waites is ongoing.
In October 2019, Todd and Julie introduced that they are suing Joshua Waites, former director of the Georgia Department of Revenue’s Office of Special Investigations. In their lawsuit, the pair claims that he used his senior standing to "aggressively pursue and prosecute bogus tax evasion claims" against them.
The duo accused Waites of growing a rapport with Todd’s eldest daughter, Lindsie Chrisley, to find out information about their finances and mentioned he shared confidential tax information with the then 30-year-old "in an effort to gain her trust or to intimidate her into cooperation."
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Lindsie, who's estranged from her father and stepmother, denied any involvement in the Department of Revenue’s investigation.
"Despite the fact that Lindsie has nothing to do with Mr. and Mrs. Chrisley’s civil and criminal tax matters, it seems they have made her the main focus of their attention in order to distract from their own wrongdoing," Lindsie’s attorney stated at the time, including that his consumer knew she’d be 'dragged back into this unfortunate situation.'"
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Following news of the Chrisleys’ lawsuit, a rep for the Georgia Department of Revenue’s Office told Page Six: "Our investigators are honest and unbiased in their work with a dedication to making sure compliance with the regulation … This development is disappointing and their accusations are unfounded, however we will be able to decline to supply to any extent further remark in this matter."
Joshua Waites resigned five months later amid a false college degree scandal.
In a major win for the Chrisleys, the senior investigator resigned from his position after the State Inspector General discovered that he had lied about completing a two-year degree in criminal justice from the University of Northwest Florida. Just two days before Waites was set to leave, the department fired him following inquiries into his spending.
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An investigation by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News found that the Office of Special Investigations "used thousands and thousands of dollars from belongings seized in legal investigations to shop for trinkets, trip, engraved firearms, tactical gear, a fleet of automobiles, and personal items." They apparently got away with it by padding the budget.
Following Waites' departure, Todd retweeted a news report that read, "High profile state investigator resigns, state AG reviewing to decide whether criminal charges are warranted."
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Savannah Chrisley, the only daughter of Todd and Julie, (Todd shares Lindsie with his ex-wife Teresa Terry) also celebrated the news, writing, "Justice might move slowly however no less than it’s moving in the proper course. This is the man who has tried to wreck our circle of relatives together with hundreds of different GA [taxpayers]."
The case against Waites is ongoing — although it isn't clear what happens now, considering Todd and Julie's June 2022 convictions.
Both Todd and Julie were charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, five counts of bank fraud, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, and one count of tax fraud, according to The Tennessean. Additionally, Julie was charged with one rely of wire fraud and one depend of obstruction of justice. (Their accountant Peter Tarantino was once charged with one depend of conspiracy to defraud the United States and two counts of willfully filing false tax returns.
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