Perhaps
The Simple Life is a little more complicated than we thought. On Friday,
Nicole Richie became the second
Simple Life star to be sentenced to serve time in jail. Much like her
Simple Life co-star
Paris Hilton,
Nicole Richie was sentenced to jail after pleading guilty to DUI. Richie was sentenced to four days in jail for driving under the influence of drugs.
25-year-old Nicole Richie arrived at the courthouse in Glendale, California with boyfriend Joel Madden to answer to a DUI charge stemming from her arrest last December. While Nicole Richie had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges in February, she was singing a different tune on Friday, as she chose to plead guilty. The plea deal landed Nicole Richie with 96 hours (four days) of jail time, with 6 hours credit for time spent. Superior Court Judge Steven K. Lubell also handed Nicole Richie three years of probation and a fine of $2,048. Lubell also stressed that if Nicole Richie were to violate her probation, he would send her to jail for one year.
Nicole Richie was ordered to complete her 90 hours in jail by September 28. Richie was told she could serve her sentence either in a city or a county jail. As well as the jail time, Nicole was ordered to enroll in a drug and alcohol program. When she returns to court on February 20, 2008, Nicole Richie must prove that she completed the drug and alcohol program. The Washington Post quoted Judge Lubell, who said to Nicole Richie, "You are not to drive with any measurable amount of alcohol or drugs in your system. You are not to drive without a driver's license." The state Department of Motor Vehicles will determine whether or not to suspend Richie's driver's license.
The DUI charge against Nicole Richie stems from an arrest in the early morning of December 11. Witnesses on a Burbank freeway spotted Richie's black Mercedes-Benz SUV driving in the wrong direction. After authorities were summoned, the California Highway Patrol found the SUV pointed the right direction, parked in the car pool lane. When the CHP spoke to Nicole Richie, she admitted that she had smoked marijuana and had taken the prescription painkiller Vicodin before getting behind the wheel of her vehicle. Of the incident, Judge Lubell said, "You are very lucky that no one was hurt of killed as the result of this incident."
Lubell went on to admonish Nicole Richie, as he said, "The facts of this case, as the court knows it, is pretty scary. Someone could have gotten killed or injured. The court does not want anything to happen to you. f you continue to drive while under the influence of drugs or alcohol and someone gets killed, you can be charged with murder, not manslaughter. I hope that never, ever happens." Shawn Chapman Holly, the attorney for Nicole Richie, acknowledged that the plea bargain reached with the prosecution was acceptable. Nicole Richie made no statement as she left the courthouse.
Rating: 5
The glam girl goes to court in black and looks great from head to toe! Nicole is one of my best bets to give Victoria Beckham a run for her money. That is, if we are talking about fashion, not size 00. But when Nicole's dressed to the nines, she's a perfect ten. If only she can give her life the same attention as she does with her style and wardrobe.
[Source]