Associated Press
Sunday, June 10, 2007

LOS ANGELES, June 9 --

Paris Hilton said Saturday she was "learning and growing" from her time behind bars and will not appeal her 45-day jail sentence for a probation violation in a reckless driving case.

The hotel heiress was at a maximum-security detention center, where she was believed to have undergone medical and psychiatric evaluations to determine the best jail to keep her in.

"Being in jail is by far the hardest thing I have ever done," Hilton said in a statement released by her lawyer, Richard A. 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."

Hilton, in tears and screaming for her mother, was taken to the downtown Twin Towers detention center Friday after a judge ordered her back to jail, ending her brief stint under house arrest.

Hilton's lawyers sought to keep her out of jail on grounds that the 26-year-old was suffering an unspecified medical condition. Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer suggested that could be taken care of at jail medical facilities.

Sheriff Lee Baca released Hilton to home detention Thursday, just five days after she turned herself in to a different jail. His decision was criticized by the judge and a host of others.

"Today, I told my attorneys not to appeal the judge's decision," Hilton said. "While I greatly appreciate the sheriff's concern for my health and welfare, I intend to serve my time at L.A. County Jail."

The celebrity Web site TMZ.com, citing law enforcement sources, said Hilton had not eaten or slept since arriving at the jail and was being given "psychotropic medication."

Hilton's path to jail began Sept. 7, 2006, when she failed a sobriety test. She pleaded no contest to reckless driving and was sentenced to 36 months' probation, alcohol education and $1,500 in fines.

In the months that followed, she was stopped twice by officers who discovered her driving with a suspended license.