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Paris' release from prison maybe short-lived |
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Written by Soo Youn and Michelle Caruso, MCT
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Friday, 08 June 2007 |
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Just one day after being sprung from jail early, heiress Paris Hilton may be headed back to her cold hard cell.
Outraged by officials' decision to release the socialite after just three days in jail, an angry prosecutor is hauling her before a judge on Friday morning.
"We cannot tolerate a two-tiered jail system where the rich and powerful receive special treatment," said Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, the prosecutor who handled her case.
In a surprise move, the sheriff's department decided to release Hilton on Thursday - just three days into a 23-day sentence - for an undisclosed "medical" reason.
Like a kid faking sick to get out of school, Hilton was said to be crying and refusing to eat. The 26-year-old celebutante's doctor convinced jail medics she was in danger of "collapsing" if she remained in her 12-by-8-foot cell without nourishment, sources said.
A friend of Hilton's said the hotel heiress wasn't physically ill, but was found "mentally unfit" to remain behind bars.
"She seemed like she was going bananas in jail," the pal told the New York Daily News. "Paris was homesick and missed her pets."
Hilton was told she would have to stay in her $2.1 million digs in the Hollywood Hills for 40 days, including Thursday, officials said.
She was ordered to wear an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet so authorities would know if she tried to sneak out.
But no restrictions were placed on what the notorious party girl could do at home, or whom she could invite over.
Prosecutor Delgadillo questioned why Hilton's medical problem couldn't be treated at the Century Regional Detention Facility, which has medical staff and an infirmary.
He said the sheriff's department, which runs the jail, should be held in contempt of court because its decision to spring Hilton early flies directly in the face of a judge's order.
When Superior Court Judge Michael Sauer sentenced Hilton for violating probation on a booze-related driving conviction, he specified that she would not be able to substitute a lesser punishment for hard time.
"No work furlough. No work release. No electronic monitoring," Sauer wrote on his sentencing order.
But Hilton seemed to think three days in the women's lock-up was more than enough punishment.
"I have learned a great deal from this ordeal and hope that others have learned from my mistakes," she said in a statement issued by her lawyer after her release.
She thanked sheriff's department staff for treating her "fairly and professionally."
On her first day home, "The Simple Life" star entertained visitors, including her mom and dad and her lawyer, Richard Hutton.
"I'm happy to have her home," said mom Kathy Hilton.
Asked about his daughter's condition, dad Rick Hilton replied: "I don't have any details."
Psychiatrist Dr. Charles Sophy, who last month told a civil judge Paris Hilton was too "distraught and traumatized" to testify in a defamation case against her, visited her in jail Tuesday and Wednesday and then pleaded with jail medics for her release, sources said.
Hilton seemed fine Sunday night, when she was out partying at the MTV Movie Awards just hours before she checked in to jail. Her aunt Kyle Richards said she was physically okay on Wednesday, doing situps and Pilates moves to stay in shape, according to E! online.
But the pampered starlet apparently freaked out in the grimy lockup, pals said.
"Paris was not eating, not sleeping, and was crying all the time. She was miserable. . . . She couldn't handle it," said a friend.
"With Paris, she's always happy. Everything is a celebration, everything is convivial. She doesn't take bad news well - and the whole jail experience was completely overwhelming for her," the friend said.
But those feelings could apply to most inmates in the crowded women's jail - and they are still there.
Hilton's "reassignment" to house arrest, coming only months after the sheriff's department was accused of giving special treatment to actor Mel Gibson when he was arrested for drunk driving, angered some public officials and members of the deputies' union.
"There appears to have been preferential treatment," union President Steve Remige said. "Why is one case, out of the blue, treated any different?" he fumed to TMZ.com.
L.A. County Supervisor Don Knabe said Hilton's reassignment "highlights the problems our criminal justice system has with making sure sentences stick," the Web site reported.
Sheriff's department spokesman Steve Whitmore said jail medical staff made the decision to send Hilton home, but he claimed Sauer was "consulted" about the move.
However, court officials said Sauer opposed the plan to let the celebutante go home.
"When Judge Sauer was advised of their intention to release her early, he reaffirmed the sentence he imposed on May 4," said court spokesman Allan Parachini.
Sauer originally sentenced Hilton to 45 days behind bars, but the sheriff's department cut that in half for "good behavior" before she even reported to the jail.
Once officials decided to let Hilton go home, the sentence was restored from 23 days to 45.
But they gave her credit for serving five days in jail, when she actually spent just three full days inside. They counted Sunday and Thursday, even though she spent less than four hours total in custody on those days.
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Laura Schreffler contributed to this report. | Only registered users can write comments.
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