#TBT It’s Been 10 Years Since Paris Hilton’s Traumatic Jail Time
It’s crazy to believe it’s been 10 years since Paris Hilton’s traumatic time spent in jail, which ended up causing a stir and furthering a discussion about how celebrities are treated vs. real folk over the simplest of crimes.
As E! Online points out, Paris Hilton was the queen bee of the mid-2000s when the 25-year-old had been arrested on suspicion of DUI while on her way to In-N-Out. She ultimately pleaded down to reckless driving in January 2007 and was sentenced to three years probation, ordered to attend alcohol-education classes and fined $1,500.
But, she was pulled over the next month, causing her Bentley Continental GTC to be impounded.
In May 2007, she was sentenced to 45 days in jail.
“I could not live with myself if anyone was injured or killed while I was driving while impaired,” she said at the time. “Clearly, no one should—no matter how slightly. I am ready to face the consequences of violating probation. No one is above the law. I surely am not. I do not expect to be treated better than anyone else who violated probation. However, my hope is that I will not be treated worse.”
While at the 2007 MTV Movie Awards on June 3, she checked out early to be sent to jail the following day, but four days later her lawyer secured a reassignment to monitored house arrest for the next 40 days, due to her suffering panic attacks and anxiety.
A Sheriff’s Department spokesman explained, “Under our 10 percent early release program, [Hilton] would not have served any time in our jail, or would have been directly put on [a] home electronic monitoring system.”
However, she was summoned to court on June 8 and was informed she’d have to end up serving behind bars after all. “It’s not right! Mom!” she screamed in court.
“This decision sends the message,” then-L.A. City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, said. “No individual—no matter how wealthy or powerful—is above the law. Today justice was served.”
So she went back to jail, but wound up serving only half of her sentence due to good behavior and chronic jail overcrowding.
“It’s a learning experience I’m going to grow from,” Paris later told Ryan Secrets for E! News. “Just being away from everything…you know, the craziness, the paparazzi. I’ve had a lot of alone time to think and read and write. Even though it’s been horrible and really hard, I think that God makes everything happen for a reason and this is my time to figure out what my purpose is in life. I’ve really grown from it.”