Hilton begins jail sentence

Hilton begins jail sentence


Staff and agencies
Monday June 4, 2007
Guardian Unlimited


The socialite Paris Hilton has begun a jail sentence for violating her probation, her lawyer has said.
"Paris Hilton has turned herself in to begin serving her sentence for violating probation at a Los Angeles county jail located in Lynwood, California," Richard Hutton confirmed in a statement yesterday.

The statement quoted 26-year-old hotel heiress Hilton as saying: "This is an important point in my life, and I need to take responsibility for my actions.

"In the future, I plan on taking more of an active role in the decisions I make ... although I am scared, I am ready to begin my jail sentence."
The celebrity news website TMZ.com said Mr Hutton picked Hilton up from her parents' home at 10.30pm (0530 GMT) yesterday, away from the glare of photographers waiting at the Lynwood prison.

He drove her to the Men's Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles, where she surrendered to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. From there, she was driven to Lynwood.

Hilton's spokesman, Elliot Mintz, declined to comment, saying he was awaiting word from the sheriff's department. A sheriff's official would not confirm whether the heiress had begun her sentence.

She had until tomorrow to turn herself in and begin the term, which was cut from 45 to 23 days under state sentencing guidelines.

Earlier yesterday evening, Hilton attended the MTV Movie Awards near Hollywood. In a red carpet interview with the music TV channel, she said she was "doing OK" but was "obviously a little scared right now".

She added that she hoped her time in prison would inspire other young people to think about their actions and make good decisions. "These last couple of weeks have been a lot of time for self-reflection on my life and realising what's important," she added.