Friday, May 04, 2007

Driving Miss Hilton...

Celebrity heiress Paris Hilton today was sentenced to 45 days in jail for violating her probation in a reckless-driving case.

A Los Angeles judge handed down the sentence after prosecutors contended in a two-hour hearing that Hilton had violated her probation when she was ticketed in late February for driving a blue Bentley Continental GTC on Sunset Boulevard with a suspended license. Hilton, who said her aides did not tell her she could not drive, and her attorneys argued that it was a mistake and that her action did not warrant a jail sentence.

But Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer rejected Hilton's plea, ordering her to report to Los Angeles County Jail on June 5. If she doesn't appear, the jail the sentence would rise to 90 days.

Hilton appeared stunned by the ruling and began to cry. Hilton's mother also began to show her displeasure visibly, shaking her head -- and had be warned by a court official to stop.

"I don't know what happened. I did what they said," Hilton said afterward.

Her mother, Kathy, told the prosecutor after the judge's decision: "You're pathetic."

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?”

Paris Hilton was among a series of witnesses who took the stand during the hearing. She testified she believed her license was initially suspended for 30 days and that she was allowed to drive for work purposes during the next 90 days.

She said that when an officer who stopped her in January made her sign a document stating her license was suspended, she thought he was mistaken and did not actually look at the document.

Also called to the stand was Hilton’s spokesman, Elliot Mintz. Hilton and her attorneys characterized Mintz as a liaison between Hilton and her lawyers.

Mintz testified that to his knowledge Hilton did not drive during the 30-day period. He said he then advised her that he believed her license was no longer suspended.

The judge called Mintz’s testimony worthless and expressed disbelief at Hilton’s lawyers.

“I can’t believe that either attorney did not tell her that the suspension had been upheld,” the judge said. “She wanted to disregard everything that was said and continue to drive no matter what.”

[...]

When a reporter asked what she thought of the judge’s decision, a visibly angry Kathy Hilton responded: “What do you think? This is pathetic and disgusting, a waste of taxpayer money with all this nonsense. This is a joke.”

One of her attorneys, Howard Weitzman, said he would appeal.

“I’m shocked, I’m surprised and really disheartened in the system that I’ve worked in for close to 40 years,” Weitzman said.

He said the sentence was “uncalled for, inappropriate and bordered on the ludicrous.”

“I think she’s singled out because of who she is,” Weitzman said.