ATLANTA — Reality star Chase Chrisley is opening up about his arrest earlier this year and revealing a drinking problem surrounding his parents’ federal conviction.
The Chrisley family returned to television this week in the premiere of their new Lifetime show "The Chrisleys: Back to Reality."
His parents, Todd and Julie Chrisley, were convicted of federal tax fraud and sentenced to 12 and seven years in prison, respectively. Earlier this year, after serving two years of their sentences, President Donald Trump pardoned the couple.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
Chase Chrisley, who has been less outspoken about the family’s situation than his sister Savannah Chrisley, shared his feelings about the ups and downs of reality TV fame.
He said that after his parents were sent to prison, he began drinking more heavily.
“I 100% took the show for granted,” the 29-year-old said. “It was, like, the best job in the world. After my parents went away, when I started drinking, I would just go and go and go and go. [I] wasn’t setting any boundaries for myself and didn’t really have anybody to tell me no.”
In January, Chase Chrisley was arrested in Atlanta after being accused of slapping the manager at a Twin Peaks restaurant and booked into the Fulton County Jail.
According to the police report, Chase Chrisley “became really drunk” and then “started to act very disrespectful and belligerent.” He was charged with simple battery and released on a $10,000 bond.
RELATED STORIES:
- Chase Chrisley bonds out of Fulton County Jail after arrest for slapping restaurant manager
- Todd and Julie Chrisley released from federal prison after pardon from President Trump
- Todd Chrisley: ‘I would have remorse if it was something that I did’
- The Chrisleys are coming back to reality TV to expose the ‘raw truth of their lives’
He says he didn’t “remember a lot” from that night.
“Everybody there says I didn’t put my hands on anybody, but I mean, it ended up with me with a mugshot. I think I kinda just hit rock bottom,” he said.
In the episode, Savannah Chrisley claimed that she went to great lengths to help her brother.
“Before he got arrested, I had set up for him to go to a treatment facility. I had already bought him a plane ticket. We had already gone through the whole intake process,” she said. “And then he told me to go eff myself.”
Chase Chrisley said that he has since slowed down his partying habits for his mental health.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]