Hilton expected to remain in jail medical ward

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Paris Hilton, sent back to jail for violating probation in a drunken-driving case, will finish her sentence at the medical ward where she ended up after a day of house arrest, the celebrity Web site TMZ.com reported on Sunday.

TMZ, citing unnamed sources, also said the 26-year-old hotel heiress was eating again, still having trouble sleeping and had received visits from her sister, Nicky, and her sometime boyfriend, Greek shipping scion Stavros Niarchos.

A spokesman for Hilton declined comment on the report, as did officials for the sheriff's department.

Hilton began her jail term last Sunday night at the sprawling Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood, just outside Los Angeles, and served three full days there before the sheriff's department "reassigned" her to home detention under electronic monitoring.

Sheriff Lee Baca cited unspecified psychological problems affecting Hilton's medical condition as reasons for his decision, which drew immediate fire from prosecutors and the judge who presided over Hilton's case.

At a hearing on Friday, the judge, Michael Sauer, ordered the distraught celebrity heiress back to jail to complete her term, originally set for 45 days. But rather than returning to the Lynwood facility, Baca had her sent to the medical unit of another detention site in downtown Los Angeles.

As of Friday, Baca said Hilton was scheduled to serve another 18 days behind bars under a standard credit applied against her term for time served on good behavior.

On Saturday, the star of the reality TV show "The Simple Life" said she had told her attorneys not to appeal the order sending her back to jail.

"Being in jail is by far the hardest thing I have ever done," she said in a written statement issued by her attorney, Richard Hutton. "During the past several days, I have had a lot of time to think and I believe that I am learning and growing from this experience."

She added that she was "shocked" by the attention her case has received.

"I would hope going forward that the public and the media will focus on more important things like the men and women serving our country in Iraq and other places around the world," she said.

Hilton's early release to house arrest sparked national outrage and accusations of preferential treatment because of her celebrity status. She was sentenced to jail last month for violating probation in an alcohol-related reckless case by driving on a suspended license.

Reuters/Nielsen