Smiling Paris leaves jail after 21 days inside

HOTEL heiress Paris Hilton, who commanded as much attention behind bars as on the Hollywood party scene, regained her freedom yesterday after serving three weeks in jail for violating probation in a drunk-driving case.

The incarceration of the 26-year-old multimillionaire, who lampooned her own persona as a clueless child of privilege on the reality TV show The Simple Life, ignited a worldwide media frenzy and debate about celebrity justice.

The saga hit a crescendo when Hilton was placed briefly under house arrest after just three days in jail, sparking an uproar over what many saw as preferential treatment. Even so, a Los Angeles Times analysis found her sentence far exceeded those served by most inmates for similar offences.