Hilton hires new lawyer, tries new tack

Paris Hilton has a new lawyer and a new strategy: public contrition.

The celebrity heiress, sentenced to 45 days in jail last week for repeatedly driving on a suspended license, now says she is “ready to face the consequences” of her actions.

In a statement released by her new attorney, Richard Hutton of Pasadena, Hilton seeks to “correct what I believe are misperceptions about me

Hilton’s legal troubles stem from a September traffic stop during which she failed a field sobriety test. She pleaded no contest and had her license suspended, but continued to drive and was pulled over three more times before last’s week’s jail sentence.

“I absolutely realize how serious driving under the influence is,” she said in the statement. “I could not live with myself if anyone was injured or killed while I was driving while impaired.”

Hilton and her advisors at first decried the sentence as overly harsh.

Howard Weitzman, Hilton’s original attorney, filed a notice of intent to appeal the sentence, but it’s unclear whether Hutton – a well-known specialist in DUI cases – plans to continue that strategy. Hilton’s supporters have also asked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to pardon her.

In her statement, Hilton again hinted that she had been singled out because of her fame.

“I do not expect to be treated better than anyone else who violated probation,” she said. “However my hope is that I will not be treated worse.”

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 ashraf.khalil@latimes.com