A California judge has sentenced Paris Hilton to 45 days in jail today for violating her probation, putting the brakes on the hotel heiress' famous high life and prompting her mother to ask for his autograph.
Party girl Hilton, 26, must go to jail on June 5th and she will not be allowed any work release, leave of absences, use of an alternative jail or electronic monitoring in place of jail, Loa Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Sauer ruled after a hearing.
The judge said she broke the terms of her probation in an alcohol-related reckless driving case. "I'm very sorry and from now on I'm going to pay complete attention to everything. I'm sorry and I did not do it on purpose at all," she told the judge before he announced the sentence.
She was then ordered to report to a women's jail in suburban Lynwood on the set date or face 90 days behind bars.
As a city prosecutor said during closing arguments that Hilton deserved jail time, Hilton's mother Kathy laughed. When the judge ruled, Kathy Hilton then blurted out: "May I have your autograph?"
Hilton was among a series of witnesses who took the stand during the hearing. She maintained she was unaware her driving licence was suspended and thought she was allowed to drive for work purposes. She said that when an officer who stopped her in January made her sign a document stating her licence was suspended, she thought he was mistaken and did not actually look at the document.
Hilton arrived at the court 10 minutes after the scheduled 1.30pm start time of the hearing. The heiress arrived in the back of a black Cadillac Escalade and swept into the Metropolitan Courthouse with several men in suits, ignoring photographers lining the route into a rear entrance. In addition to her mother, her father Rick also came with her.
Hilton pleaded no contest in January to reckless driving stemming from a September 7th arrest in Hollywood. Police said she appeared intoxicated and failed a field sobriety test. She had a blood-alcohol level of .08%, the level at which an adult driver is breaking the law.
She was sentenced to 36 months' probation, alcohol education and $750 in fines. Two other traffic stops and failure to enrol in an alcohol education programme are what landed the socialite back in court.
On January 15th, Hilton was pulled over by the California Highway Patrol. Officers informed her that she was driving on a suspended licence and she signed a document acknowledging that she was not to drive, according to papers filed in Superior Court.
Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies stopped Hilton on February 27th and charged her with violating her probation. Police said she was pulled over at about 11pm after authorities saw the car speeding with its headlights off.
Hilton's spokesman, Elliot Mintz, said at the time Hilton was not aware her licence was suspended. A copy of the document Hilton signed on January 15th was found in the car's glove compartment, court papers say. Hilton was also required to enrol in an alcohol education programme by February 12th. As of April 17th, she had not enrolled, prosecutors said.
AP