One of my guilty pleasures is to follow the act that Paris Hilton puts on for the world. I don’t know her. Nor do I claim to have figured out what drives this lady to seek the lime light. She is clearly one of the world’s most well-known brands. Being only twenty-six this is no small accomplishment. After voluntarily moving to a small farm for a reality TV show (The Simple Life), she is involuntarily moving into a prison cell. I would not be surprised if she manages to land another reality TV show gig called “The Prison Life.” Read below the details why a judge sent her to prison for 45 days. Sing Sing for someone who only wanted to be a famous singer.

Paris Hilton Is Sentenced to 45 Days in Jail

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LOS ANGELES (AP)—A judge sentenced Paris Hilton to 45 days in county jail Friday for violating her probation, putting the brakes on the hotel heiress’ famous high life.

Hilton, who parlayed her name and relentless partying into worldwide notoriety, must go to jail by June 5 and she will not be allowed any work release, furloughs, use of an alternative jail or electronic monitoring in lieu of jail, Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer ruled after a hearing.

The judge, saying ‘‘there’s no doubt she knew her license had been suspended,’’ ruled that she was in violation of the terms of her probation in an alcohol-related reckless driving case.

‘‘I’m very sorry and from now on I’m going to pay complete attention to everything. I’m sorry and I did not do it on purpose at all,’’ she told the judge before he announced the sentence.

She was then ordered to report to a women’s jail in suburban Lynwood by the set date or face 90 days behind bars. The judge’s ruling excluded her from paying to serve time in a jail of her choice, as some are allowed.

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.’‘

Hilton’s parents, Kathy and Rick, attended the hearing, holding hands throughout the proceedings. Both wore black suits. Kathy Hilton’s beige, $3,000-plus Hermes bag sat on the floor by her side.

Reporters filled most of the 64-seat courtroom. Two sketch artists sat in the otherwise empty jury box.

When the judge announced Hilton’s sentence, the reporters in attendance jumped up to leave until a bailiff snapped, ‘‘Sit down.’’ Cell phones and other electronic devices were not allowed in the courtroom.

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 looked forward and didn’t speak to news media as she left court. Her mother looked upset.

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.’‘

Defense attorney 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.

City attorney spokesman Nick Velasquez said late Friday that the judge’s ruling ‘‘sends a clear message that in the city of Los Angeles, no one is above the law.’‘

‘‘She violated the law and appropriate action was taken,’’ he said.

Hilton had arrived at the Metropolitan Courthouse 10 minutes late and ignored screams of photographers as she swept in with her attorneys, mother and father. Wearing a gray jacket and white shirt over black slacks and with a black headband on, she said nothing and appeared serious.

The celebrity case brought an unusual scene to the austere courthouse south of downtown in a commercial area. As if at a red carpet event, dozens of photographers and reporters lined up at the rear entrance. Yellow police tape substituted for velvet ropes.

Hilton, 26, pleaded no contest in January to reckless driving stemming from a Sept. 7 arrest in Hollywood. Police said she appeared intoxicated and failed a field sobriety test. She had a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent, the level at which an adult driver is in violation of the law.

She was sentenced to 36 months probation, alcohol education and $1,500 in fines.

Two other traffic stops and failure to enroll in a mandated alcohol education program, are what landed the socialite back in court.

On Jan. 15, Hilton was pulled over by California Highway Patrol. Officers informed her that she was driving on a suspended license and she signed a document acknowledging that she was not to drive, according to papers filed in Superior Court.

Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies stopped Hilton on Feb. 27 and charged her with violating her probation. Police said she was pulled over at about 11 p.m. after authorities saw the car speeding with its headlights off.

Mintz said at the time Hilton wasn’t aware her license was suspended. A copy of the document Hilton signed on Jan. 15 was found in the car’s glove compartment, court papers say.

Hilton was also required to enroll in an alcohol education program by Feb. 12. As of April 17, she had not enrolled, prosecutors said.

Hilton, heiress to the Hilton Hotel fortune, first gained notoriety for her hard partying as a teen. She attracted worldwide attention when a sex tape she made with a boyfriend was released on the Internet.

She stars in the reality-TV series, ‘‘The Simple Life,’’ now in its fifth season, with Nicole Richie. She appeared in the 2005 film, ‘‘House of Wax’’ and recently finished filming ‘‘The Hottie and the Nottie.’’ She also is a handbag designer and has a namesake perfume.

Addition May 15, 2007: In defense of Paris Hilton by Richard Abovitz

This gloating is getting unseemly. Even my sister, a lawyer in Washington D.C., called last night to express not only her joy that Paris Hilton was going to jail but her apprehension that the heiress might find way to wriggle herself out of it.  I am betting that view will be reinforced by this picture of Paris Hilton at the recent Coachella music festival surreptitiously smoking what looks like a joint, marijuana, the devil’s weed, etc.

Of course, when I gave my sister my estimates as to how much money Paris could conceivably be paid from a resort nightclub in Vegas to host a “Paris is Free” jailbird after-party, her joy turned glum. “For that kind of money, I’d do the time,” my law-abiding sibling admitted. Even at the bottom, Paris Hilton will still come out on top. So, is Paris Hilton some special genius? I think not. I have interviewed and been around Paris Hilton enough now to take a guess that her brainpower was never going to take her places in life. She has described herself as not bright and she isn’t wrong. I laugh at people who refer to her as a brilliant businesswoman. With Paris Hilton, what you see is exactly what you get. She and her image are one. Dresses, jewels, parties and red carpets where she offers her flip and bland comments (identical to her conversation). Then inside the nightclubs, depending on the night, you can catch a glimpse of Paris dancing on tables, Paris playing with boys, or Paris walking into walls.

Our fascination with a celebrity’s radical self-absorbed and self-destructive individuality is larger than Paris Hilton (think fellow Vegas regulars Britney and Lindsay), of course. Yet, it may also have started with Paris Hilton. Around 2001 the zeitgeist simply began an infatuation with Paris Hilton and it spread. There is no rational explanation for the investment of such deep feelings, pro and con, into such an empty vessel. One day this Paris Hilton mania will end as inexplicably as it started. Sociologists, anthropologists and all sorts of “experts” I am sure could ramble on with explanations of the Paris Hilton phenomenon. I could, too. But I doubt the experts, Paris herself, or my own insight into her success is sharper than anyone else’s. I can understand my sister’s frustration at finding coverage of Paris Hilton blotting out real news and issues. But that is hardly to Hilton’s credit or her fault.

So, this is where I defend Paris Hilton. In Las Vegas, Paris Hilton has become a professional at attending parties. She reportedly gets paid for it, and she is good at it. In fact, she is the best I have ever seen and, as a result, the resort nightclubs and all Las Vegas have benefited. Paris Hilton created an economic boom for Las Vegas by being one of the first celebrities to pied piper her well-tipping, big-spending and, blessedly, mathematically-challenged friends and worshipers from LA to make hot the new generation of Vegas nightclubs in casino resorts. They play hard; they spend big; they tip well. From my stories to the limo drivers to the cocktail servers: everyone gets something out of the Paris Hilton crowd visiting Las Vegas. A lot of working people (and their dependent families) who are not trust-fund folk or celebrities have benefited hugely from Paris Hilton’s role in focusing her large spotlight on the new Vegas as party central.

Of course, Paris Hilton isn’t above the law. And only opportunists and publicity seekers are leading the ludicrous Free Paris Hilton drives. Yes, Paris Hilton appears not only to have fallen afoul of the law, but handled the entire situation of facing punishment like a spoiled brat throwing a tantrum. But she is a spoiled brat throwing a tantrum. It isn’t an act. Still, I would say this to my sister and all the rest of the Paris Hilton haters: can’t you think of at least one person in your family who has done as bad or worse? And, like a family member, we are stuck with Paris Hilton, because ultimately we created her peculiar form of celebrity and as long we care she will be there.

The story is starting to be not only funny

June 8, 2007
Paris Hilton Is Ordered Back to Jail

By SHARON WAXMAN
LOS ANGELES, June 8