Hilton says she won't appeal her jail sentence
By ALEX VEIGA, Associated Press Writer
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Paris Hilton's Jail Sentence
(06-09) 18:57 PDT Los Angeles (AP) --
Paris Hilton said Saturday that she won't appeal her 45-day jail sentence for probation violation, saying she is "learning and growing" from her time behind bars and wants the media to turn its attention to other things, such as the war in Iraq.
"Today, I told my attorneys not to appeal the judge's decision," Hilton said in a statement released by her lawyer, Richard A. Hutton. "While I greatly appreciate the sheriff's concern for my health and welfare, I intend to serve my time at L.A. County Jail."
Hutton did not respond to repeated calls from The Associated Press to verify the statement but another Hilton attorney did confirm it was authentic.
"It's true," attorney Steve Levine said. "I can't comment on it."
Hilton was being housed in a maximum-security detention center where the hotel heiress was believed to be undergoing medical and psychiatric evaluations to determine the best jail to keep her in as she serves the rest of her sentence.
Hilton, in tears and screaming for her mother, was taken to the downtown Twin Towers detention center Friday afternoon after a judge ordered her back to jail, ending her brief stint under house arrest at her Hollywood Hills home.
"The Simple Life" star was escorted from the courtroom shouting "It's not right!"
"Being in jail is by far the hardest thing I have ever done," Hilton said in her statement. "During the past several days, I have had a lot of time to think and I believe that I am learning and growing from this experience."
Hilton also thanked fans for sending her mail and said she loves and misses her family.
"I must also say that I was shocked to see all of the attention devoted to the amount of time I would spend in jail for what I had done by the media, public and city officials," her statement concluded. "I would hope going forward that the public and the media will focus on more important things like the men and women serving our country in Iraq and other places around the world."
Hilton's lawyers had sought to keep her out of jail on grounds that the 26-year-old was suffering an unspecified medical condition. Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer suggested that could be taken care of at jail medical facilities.
Los Angeles County sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said he had not seen the statement and could not discuss it Saturday. Earlier, he declined to discuss details of Hilton's case, including the state of her medical evaluations, citing laws against revealing such information on inmates.
"All I can say, as with all the inmates in this facility, they are monitored continuously," Whitmore said.
Although Whitmore wouldn't discuss Hilton's condition, Sheriff Lee Baca indicated at a news conference Friday that it was psychological.
He said she arrived at her original jail with a condition he hadn't been apprised of and that it immediately began to deteriorate to the point that he feared for her safety.
"When you're talking about psychological problems it's far more complex and it does require a more complex medical approach," Baca said. "We didn't have all of our information."
When she went to Twin Towers Baca said he was placing Hilton in a "better facility for her condition, meaning one that has a more intense form of medical support." He said she'd be kept under close watch to ensure "that there isn't anything harmful done to herself by herself, which is a great concern to me."
Whitmore said she'll be there at least through Sunday.
Twin Towers is equipped to treat acute medical and mental health needs, although inmates in need of surgery are moved to a hospital for treatment. About 40 inmates are housed per floor, and most of the rooms are designed for one patient at a time.
Hilton is truly living the simple life, in a room Whitmore described as a little more than 100 square feet, with a toilet, sink and "a sliver of a window."
It is roomier than the cell she had at her first lockup, the Century Regional Detention Center in Lynwood, a gritty city south of Los Angeles. That cell measured only 96 square feet.
Between 10 to 20 sheriff's deputies, doctors, nurses and other medical personnel are on duty per floor to monitor inmates at Twin Towers, Whitmore said. The staff does not use cameras to monitor their rooms.
Twin Towers' medical ward has weekend inmate visitation hours, which, in theory, would also apply to Hilton. Female inmates are allowed visits on Sundays and Tuesdays.
Which jail the heiress will end up at after Twin towers depends on the results of her assessment by the facility's doctors.
Sauer sentenced Hilton to 45 days in jail and said she could not serve it at home. When she was released she had served only three full days but was credited with five because she surrendered to authorities late Sunday night after attending the MTV Movie Awards and was released early Thursday morning. Before her release, she was fitted with an ankle bracelet and ordered not to leave her house until her sentence was up.
Just a day later Sauer ordered her to court and returned her to jail.
Hilton was credited with both her time served in jail and at home, so by Saturday she had completed seven days of her sentence. With time off for good behavior, she could be released in a little more than two weeks.
Hilton's path to jail began Sept. 7, when she failed a sobriety test after police saw her weaving down a street in her Mercedes-Benz on what she said was a late-night run to a hamburger stand.
She pleaded no contest to reckless driving and was sentenced to 36 months' probation, alcohol education and $1,500 in fines.
In the months that followed, she was stopped twice by officers who discovered her driving on a suspended license. The second stop landed her in Sauer's courtroom, where he sentenced her to jail.
Hilton checked herself into a county jail in Lynwood last Sunday and was expected to serve only 23 days because of a state law that requires shorter sentences for good behavior.
On Thursday, sheriff's officials released her, citing a medical condition and sent her home under house arrest.
A day later, Sauer ordered Hilton to return to jail, saying he had not condoned her release.
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