Paris Hilton Ordered Back to Court After 'celebrity Justice' Claim

Paris Hilton has been ordered back to court today and could be sent back to prison after prosecutors condemned her early move from jail to house arrest.

One senior county official, Don Knabe, said that the 26-year-old hotel heiress's return home yesterday with an electronic tag "gives the impression of ... celebrity justice being handed out".

Late yesterday, prosecutors moved to hold the LA sheriff's department in contempt after it decided to send Hilton home after only five days of her jail sentence for reckless driving probation violation. The sheriff's department said it had sent her home to finish her 45-day sentence because of an unspecified medical condition.

Responding to a court filing by the Los Angeles city attorney, Judge Michael Sauer - who originally sent her to prison - ordered Hilton to appear before him at 9am (1700 BST).

During a day of political and legal recriminations yesterday, it emerged that while Judge Sauer had been told of the decision to move Ms Hilton, he had not agreed to it. "He reiterated the terms of his sentencing order," court spokesman Allan Parachini said. "He did not agree to the terms of release that the sheriff proposed."

At her sentencing in May, the judge decreed that she was to serve her sentence behind bars, specifically ruling out the possibility of electronic monitoring.

However, Sheriff Lee Baca yesterday defended her decision to release her from jail. "It isn't wise to keep a person in jail with her problem over an extended period of time and let the problem get worse," Mr Baca told the Los Angeles Times. "My message to those who don't like celebrities is that punishing celebrities more than the average American is not justice."

Other officials have said the LA county jail system is so overcrowded it is not unusual for non-violent offenders to be released after serving as little as 10% of their sentences.

But the sheriff's department faced an outpouring of criticism for the decision both by observers who said that the move confirmed the inequalities in the justice system, and city authorities who said that they had not been consulted over the decision.

In his court filing, the city attorney Rocky Delgadillo argues that the city's sheriff's department should be held in contempt of court and that Hilton should be returned to prison in the south of the city to complete her sentence.

Such action, says the filing, "will restore any loss of public confidence in and respect for the integrity of the government of this city, county and state".

In a statement released yesterday, Mr Delgadillo said he was troubled to learn that Hilton had been released from jail, adding that he had only learned of the move from news reports. "Had we been provided with the proper notification, we would have opposed the decision on legal grounds."

Mr Delgadillo also said he was puzzled by the sheriff's department's declaration that Hilton had been moved on medical grounds. "Los Angeles county jail medical facilities are well-equipped to deal with medical situations involving inmates," he said.

He concluded: "If law enforcement officials are to enjoy the respect of those we are charged with protecting, we cannot tolerate a two-tiered jail system where the rich and powerful receive special treatment. We must ensure that in our city, in our nation, and under our constitution, justice remains blind."

In the hours after Hilton's release, photographers began gathering outside her house in the hills above the Sunset Strip; television news helicopters buzzed overhead.

Hilton later issued a statement through her lawyers: "I want to thank the Los Angeles County sheriff's department and staff of the Century Regional Detention Centre for treating me fairly and professionally," she said.

"I am going to serve the remaining 40 days of my sentence. I have learned a great deal from this ordeal and hope that others have learned from my mistakes."