FYI...
Ankle-wear for Paris not too restrictive By JEFF WILSON, Associated Press Writer
Thu Jun 7, 9:49 PM ET
Though a court appearance Friday morning could send her back to jail, Paris Hilton for now can party on — despite an electronic ankle bracelet that's a constant reminder someone is watching.
"House arrest is nothing," said Steve Cron, a criminal defense attorney unconnected to the case. "She can have friends over. She can party all night long."
That might be for one night only if a judge rules in favor of the city attorney's petition to return her to the Century Regional Detention Facility.
If he doesn't, however, Hilton, who was sprung from jail Thursday after serving just over three days of a 45-day sentence, would be able to roam free in her gated 2,700-square-foot home for the duration of the sentence, reduced to 23 days for good behavior.
The monitoring device allows long distance surveillance by probation officials to keep track of the whereabouts of offenders, with a range of about 3,000 to 4,000 square feet.
"House arrest for someone like her who doesn't have to work and doesn't have to worry about picking up her clothes at the dry cleaner is not a problem," Cron said. "She can have all her food sent in."
The early release of the 26-year-old socialite created a stir with questions about special treatment for celebrities and the well-heeled.
Sheriff's officials, however, said it was not unusual for inmates to finish sentences under home confinement.
Hilton spent three nights in a 12-by-8-foot cell at Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood, just south of downtown Los Angeles and a world away from her Hollywood Hills home.
It was not known whether special restrictions were placed on "The Simple Life" star. Her publicist Elliot Mintz and attorney Richard Hutton did not return repeated phone calls Thursday. Whitmore said he was unaware of the conditions for home confinement.
Cron said special conditions can be worked out with the sheriff and the court.
Anyone can visit Hilton at home and she can even do a photo shoot or interview if she likes, Cron said. But it's unlikely Hilton will risk leaving home for a night on the town.
"If there's any photos of her out at night, all hell will break loose," Cron said.
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AP Special Correspondent Linda Deutsch contributed to this report.
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Paris Hilton ordered to return to court By JOHN ROGERS, Associated Press Writer
20 minutes ago
Rarely has it been the simple life for Paris Hilton these days.
The hotel heiress was headed for a courtroom showdown Friday that could put her back behind bars, as prosecutors sought to hold sheriff's officials in contempt for releasing her early from jail.
Hilton was ordered to report to court at 9 a.m. and will be brought in a sheriff's vehicle from her Hollywood Hills home, said Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini.
The frenzy began early Thursday when sheriff's officials released Hilton because of an undisclosed medical condition and sent her home under house arrest. She had been in jail for three days.
Hilton was fitted with an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet and was expected to finish her 45-day sentence for a reckless driving probation violation at her four-bedroom, three-bath home.
The decision by Sheriff Lee Baca to move Hilton chafed prosecutors and Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer, who spelled out during sentencing that Hilton was not allowed to serve house detention.
Late Thursday, Sauer issued the order for Hilton to return to court after the city attorney filed a petition demanding that Hilton be returned to jail and to show cause why Baca shouldn't be held in contempt of court.
Baca does not have to be in court, and it was unclear who would represent the Sheriff's Department.
The move also was met with outrage from the sheriff's deputies union, members of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, civil rights leaders, defense attorneys and others.
"What transpired here is outrageous," county Supervisor Don Knabe told The Associated Press, adding he received more than 400 angry e-mails and hundreds more phone calls from around the country.
Hilton's return home "gives the impression of ... celebrity justice being handed out," he said.
Baca dismissed the criticism, saying the decision was made based on medical advice.
"It isn't wise to keep a person in jail with her problem over an extended period of time and let the problem get worse," Baca told the Los Angeles Times on Thursday.
"My message to those who don't like celebrities is that punishing celebrities more than the average American is not justice," Baca said.
The Los Angeles County jail system is so overcrowded that attorneys and jail officials have said it is not unusual for nonviolent offenders like Hilton to be released after serving as little as 10 percent of their sentences.
In the hours after Hilton's release, it was a madcap scene outside her house in the hills above the Sunset Strip. As word spread that the 26-year-old poster child for bad celebrity behavior was back home, radio helicopter pilots who normally report on traffic conditions were dispatched to hover over her house and describe it to morning commuters. Paparazzi photographers on the ground quickly assembled outside its gates.
Shortly before noon, Hilton issued a statement through her attorney.
"I want to thank the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and staff of the Century Regional Detention Center for treating me fairly and professionally," she said. "I am going to serve the remaining 40 days of my sentence. I have learned a great deal from this ordeal and hope that others have learned from my mistakes."
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.
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I wonder if that sheriff was paid by her family???
Lorie
