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NANCY GRACE

Paris Hilton Said to Be Suffering From Depression, ADD and Claustrophobia

Aired June 11, 2007 - 20:00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


MIKE BROOKS, GUEST HOST: Breaking news tonight. I`m Mike Brooks, in for Nancy Grace, who will be joining us momentarily at the LA Twin Towers correctional facility, where celebutante Paris Hilton sits in a medical facility after a rumble at the courthouse and bitter protests of a two- tiered justice system. Paris Hilton walks free from the ladies` lock-up in direct opposition to judge`s order, but 24 hours later, that same judge orders Hilton back to jail in tears. Asked to explain her mystery illness tonight, we learn it`s depression, allegedly ADD, and a fit of claustrophobia.
Hilton ordered back to jail screaming and crying, but the population demands a recall of the sheriff who set her free. Paris Hilton sits in a private room, a window view, normally reserved for the acutely ill, her visitors expedited past regular people, and Paris Hilton`s PR team scrambles, the sheriff refusing to comment, basically in hiding.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is she handcuffed?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, she was cuffed.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A disheveled Paris Hilton in handcuffs and tears, reporters and photographers trampling each other...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gee, look at these people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: ... arrived at the courthouse, broadcast live in true LA celebrity style. But it`s a surprisingly public and bitter brawl between Judge Michael Sauer and LA Sheriff Lee Baca, who released Hilton to house arrest that`s raised some serious questions about whether Paris Hilton`s celebrity earned her star treatment or a stiff sentence.

Privileged and pampered, Paris Hilton has been given a bitter taste of how the other half lives, forced to follow a judge`s order to come to court, handcuffed, made to serve out her sentence in jail instead of her 2,700-square-foot West Hollywood mansion. It`s not the treatment the celebutante is used to, especially not in LA.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROOKS: Good evening. I`m Mike Brooks, in for Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us tonight. Paris Hilton in an LA medical facility with hotel-size rooms, city views, ping-pong, magazines, newspapers and a special menu just for her. It`s reserved for the acutely medically ill. As protests mount, has money and celebrity won out again in LA?

Nancy will be with us shortly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PARIS HILTON, "THE SIMPLE LIFE": Well, I did have the choice to go to a pay jail, but I declined because I feel like the media portrays me in a way that I`m not. And that`s why I wanted to go to county and show that I can do it. And I want to be treated like everyone else, and I`m going to do the time. I`m going to do it the right way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What has been the Hollywood celebrity story of Paris Hilton in jail has now turned into a full-blown legal drama. Just about a day after sheriff`s deputies escorted Paris Hilton to her Hollywood Hills home to serve out the remainder of her sentence, there was a hearing here at this courthouse, and the judge overseeing the case, the judge who originally handed her down that sentence, sent her back to jail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROOKS: Nancy Grace will be joining us live from LA`s Twin (SIC) correctional facility in just a few moments. But first let`s go out to Sibila Vargas, who is at the LA sheriff`s headquarters with the latest. Sibila, can you tell us what is going on out there?

SIBILA VARGAS, CONGRESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I got to tell you, Sharpton was actually here, talking to Sheriff Lee Baca. But let`s talk about Paris Hilton. She is staying at the correctional facility. Now, this is a ward, a medical ward. It`s actually called the Medical Service Bureau. I spoke to LA County Sheriff`s Department`s Steve Whitmore today, who told me a little bit about the ward. It beds about 196 inmates. She is staying in a solitary cell by herself. You know, from what I hear, she`s being treated like anybody else.

But I did ask him about this report that she did ping-pong, or she was playing ping-pong. In fact, she had spoken to Barbara Walters earlier over the weekend, and she had mentioned that she had played ping-pong. And I said, Well, you know, does -- is that something that they normally do? And he said, Well, you know, this is a different facility than what she was in. There`s special conditions, special arrangements. If you really want to focus on that, you can, but I`m not going to get into it. So at that point, the conversation was almost done.

And that`s what I can tell you so far, Mike, so -- it`s interesting.

BROOKS: Well, Sibila, you know, it`s different than Lynwood, but I mean, the sheriff -- what is he thinking about? But is she going to get the help that she really needs at this facility, compared to Lynwood, where she was before?

VARGAS: Well, you know, it`s interesting because city attorney Rocky Delgadillo -- he`s the guy who spearheaded the whole movement to get Paris Hilton back in jail. According to him, the medical facility -- he didn`t understand why they weren`t treating her at the medical facility in Lynwood, why did they take her and allow her to go home, in home detention. But it all depends on who you speak to. Now, they -- I have heard reports that she was on some type of medication that maybe in the Lynwood jail, they weren`t able to give her, but at this facility they`re able to give her.

And again, this is medical facility. There`s a lot of doctors there. There`s nurses. They have deputies monitoring these patients the entire time. So you`ve got to think that perhaps she is getting better treatment there.

BROOKS: Well, let`s hear what this reporter had to say about her treatment going on right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was crying on Friday as she was being hauled back to jail. But over the weekend, Paris Hilton -- apparently, she`s toughened up. Maybe a little visit from her sister, Nikki, gave her that extra motivation she needed, Paris telling her lawyers to forget the appeal, saying she`s dealing her ordeal supposedly through spirituality.

Paris Hilton also released her own statement over the weekend, saying, "Being in jail is by far the hardest thing I have ever done. During the past several days, I`ve had a lot of time to think and believe that I am learning and growing from this experience."

So she says she`s not going to play dumb anymore. She`s looking for more spirituality.

Did LA Sheriff Lee Baca know what he was getting himself into when he let Paris Hilton free -- well, free to house arrest -- last Thursday? Paris is, of course, back in jail tonight, and she remains there. The sheriff and outspoken Civil Rights activist the Reverend Al Sharpton actually met about this whole situation. While Paris may have been the catalyst for that meeting, she was actually, it turns out, a side note to their discussion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROOKS: Well you know, let`s go out to Mike Walker. He`s senior editor with "National Enquirer." Mike, you know, is this circus, is it continuing out there? What are you hearing from your end?

MIKE WALKER, "NATIONAL ENQUIRER": Well, what`s going on here is behind-the-scenes stuff. There`s maneuvering been going on since this whole thing started. Phone calls are being made between and among very powerful people, as you can imagine.

And what`s interesting is, of course, that when Paris first went in, her associates were telling people around this town that Paris would be out in a day or two, Don`t worry about it, because, as you know, she has certain commitments. She`ll show up at a nightclub and get a quarter of a million dollars for it. It makes you wonder, Gee, how did they know she was going to be out of jail in a couple of days?

It`s quite a dance that`s going on here. And of course, we have Sheriff Lee Baca, who is telling us all -- pointing the finger at us. He said, I have a message for those of you who don`t like celebrities. He said, The only thing not to like here is the very stiff sentence that she got. So Sheriff Baca is trying to convince us that the judge was wrong in the first place, and he wants to be the judge and I guess the jury and executioner.

Ordinarily, he`d have complete control of a prisoner. That`s true. But in this case, the judge said expressly she is to serve her full term, no paid jail, no electronic bracelets, no nothing. He went against that.

And I think it`s a very good thing. The difference to the taxpayers, $99 a day as opposed to now $1,100 a day to house Paris Hilton.

BROOKS: But if she was at home on just electronic monitoring, Mike, it wouldn`t cost anything. She would have to pick up the price, right?

WALKER: It wouldn`t cost anything. And frankly, I wouldn`t have cared. Would you have, really? Would we have been surprised that Paris Hilton would get special treatment? I mean, come on, folks...

(CROSSTALK)

BROOKS: I`m not surprised whatsoever. You know, in fact, you know, there`s talk that Lee Baca -- that he might give preferential treatment to stars because they might be padding his elections when he`s elected. But are you hearing anything like that?

WALKER: Oh, well, gosh, well, you know how these things work. Let me think, celebrities being kind to celebrities? Oh, Mel Gibson is a name that comes to mind, isn`t it. If you remember, Sheriff Baca got into a little bit of trouble when it seemed that there were two reports of Mel Gibson`s arrest, one the true report that Deputy Meese (ph) gave and then the report the sheriff`s department gave. And in the sheriff`s department report, it didn`t say anything about Mel`s anti-Semitic outbursts or anything like that.

Well, then, of course, it was broken on the news by TMZ. I`ll give them a tip of the hat. That was a good job they did. But then, of course, deputy Meese to this day, I believe, is still being investigated as the one who possibly leaked the truth, you see?

BROOKS: I tell you...

WALKER: So Sheriff Lee Baca has a few things to answer for.

BROOKS: I tell you, having been in law enforcement 26 years myself, if anybody does that kind of thing and leaks it, I think that`s disgusting and they ought to be held -- they ought to be made to answer.

Now, earlier today on "The View," we heard from Barbara Walters. She apparently talked with Paris, and because apparently, Paris was talking with her mom on the phone, and then the phone clicked -- or actually, Paris`s mom was talking with Barbara Walters on the phone, and the phone clicked in and it was Paris. Let`s hear what Barbara had to say earlier today on "The View."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA WALTERS, "THE VIEW": I asked what happened in the jail that led to her being released or reassigned to her home. She said she was not wailing, sobbing or screaming, as had been described, but she said, I was not eating or sleeping. I was severely depressed. I felt as if I was in a cage. I was not myself. It was a horrible experience. She also told me that she had not been on antidepressants.

How are you different, I asked her? And she said, I`m not the same person I was. I know now that I can make a difference, that I have the power to do that. I want to do different things when I`m out of here.

This part I thought particularly interesting. I used to act dumb. It was an act, and that act is no longer cute. It is not who I am, nor do I want to be that person for the young girls who looked up to me. She said, I`m 26 years old now, and it is a different time. She said, I have become much more spiritual. God has given me this new chance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROOKS: So is Paris now going from dumb to spiritual? I tell you, you know, was it all an act? You know, is everything she does an act?

Let`s go to the phones. Angela from Indiana. Thanks for joining us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, thank you. I`d like to ask you a question, sir.

BROOKS: Sure.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first five nights that she was in jail, and right now, she is ill, do you think she possibly could be detoxing from the drinks and the drugs she was taking?

BROOKS: You know, that`s a great question. Let`s go to Dr. Marty Mackary in D.C.. He`s a physician and professor of public health with Johns Hopkins. What do you think, Doctor?

DR. MARTY MACKARY, PHYSICIAN: It`s unlikely at this stage in the game. Realistically, if something like that would have happened, it would have been earlier.

What we often see with celebrities -- and Paris Hilton`s not my patient, but they often are accustomed to being in complete control of their health and their life and in every aspect. And when they transfer that control to something they have no power over, the law, or a disease, they act very bizarre and they`re very uncomfortable.

BROOKS: But do you think that she can get the help she really needs, the medicine, the right medical attention in this facility, other than the one she was in before?

MACKARY: Well, it`s hard to tell that she even needs anything, to be honest with you. I`m not sure what the diagnosis is. And if it`s attention deficit disorder or depression or a little bit of detox, certainly, she can get that in a jail facility. They`re quite good.

BROOKS: Well, you know, to me, I guess only time will tell.

Let`s go back to the phones. Terry from Virginia, thanks for joining us. You have a question?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, Mike, yes. We keep hearing about the problem with the overcrowding. And I`d just like to know if there`s any evidence that there`s any overcrowding in the special needs section, where she was supposed to be or where she is now. It seems like they wouldn`t have an overcrowding problem there, and you`d serve your sentence and maybe get half off from that.

BROOKS: Well, you know, I was hearing from sources out in California that there was some overcrowding in the other facility she was in, but she was in -- not segregated confinement -- well, it was segregated confinement because she was in the special needs unit. So she was away from the normal population.

Now, here in the Twin Towers, this is -- I tell you, if you`re in general population here, whether you`re a male or a female, you`re in with some really hardened criminals. Now, she`s in the medical unit, so she`s going to be removed from them. But you`ve got gang members, both male and female. You`ve got white supremacists. This is one tough jail, and it`s known as a tough jail there at the Twin Towers.

Sibila Vargas, CNN correspondent, what are you hearing about overcrowding there at the Twin Towers? Is it a major problem?

VARGAS: No, I don`t hear about overcrowding at the Twin Towers, but I did not hear about overcrowding in Lynwood, too. I mean, it`s very possible that at the Lynwood facility, there was an overcrowding issue, but not where she was staying at. In fact, I think that`s why people were outraged that it wasn`t an overcrowding, as in Michelle Rodriguez`s case, the "Lost" star, who had spent something like six hours in the jail -- she was let go because of overcrowding.

But with Paris Hilton, it was very different. There was no overcrowding in her case. It was all because of some kind of medical condition, which they would not disclose. And I think that is really what got people outraged.

BROOKS: I think you`re absolutely right. And you know, we`re hearing about the preferential treatment. But Sibila, what role is Al Sharpton playing out there? You know, this guy -- he`s never met a camera that he didn`t love.

VARGAS: True, but I think he does speak for a lot of people. I mean, he was reflecting a lot of people`s outrage over this. I mean, we had tons of people out here in Los Angeles last week as soon as we found out, outraged. In fact, the LA County board of supervisors was inundated with phone calls from everyone, not just here in Los Angeles but around the world, basically talking about how this was outrageous that she was let out for some unspecified medical condition and sent to house detention.

Al Sharpton was out here. He was outraged. He spoke about it Friday. He made a trip to come out here to speak to Sheriff Lee Baca today. Apparently, they spoke. Lee Baca gave him a list of 500 people, 500 names of people that have been to jail and they were let go to serve some house detention and -- but apparently, it was not something that was sufficient for Al Sharpton. He says it has not dissuaded him from his opinion that, you know what? If you`re poor, if you`re perhaps, you know, African- American, you do not get the treatment that Paris Hilton got.

BROOKS: Well, you know, controversy just seems to follow Sheriff Baca around wherever he goes. And we`ve heard so many things. And in fact, we`ve got a special guest tonight, Andrew Ahlering. He is starting a petition to recall Sheriff Baca. In fact, he`s got a Web site, www.recallbaca.com. Thanks for being with us.

ANDREW AHLERING, STARTING PETITION TO RECALL SHERIFF: Thank you for having me.

BROOKS: How did you get involved in this, and how did you get the ball rolling on wanting to recall the sheriff? And when did you start this campaign?

AHLERING: I started the campaign Friday of last week, just after viewing some things on line and the frustration of general members of the public and seeing a desire of people who wanted the sheriff to be recalled. So I registered the name and started building a Web site, and here I am today.

BROOKS: Now, what do you think the major issues with Sheriff Baca are right now? And what exactly -- in the end, do you want him removed, you want him recalled? What exactly do you want?

AHLERING: I do believe that, ultimately, the sheriff should be recalled. When you look at it, it`s not just the Paris Hilton favoritism. There`s celebrity favoritism that goes back. There`s also been major problems with the Los Angeles County jails. Racism runs rampant, and it`s encouraged by members of the department.

BROOKS: Well, what do you mean when you say it`s encouraged by members of the department? How are they encouraging racism in the jail, in any one particular facility in general?

AHLERING: It`s at the county`s facilities, particularly the Men`s Central jail, and also the North County facility. It`s encouraged -- when you come in, whites are to identify with the Woods (ph). Latinos are to identify with either the Pisas (ph) or the South Siders, who are the gang members, and...

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Prison expert Steve Shoal (ph) has never heard of an inmate getting locked up, sent home and brought back in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They`re kind of playing her as a ping-pong ball.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But Baca didn`t release Hilton solely due to overcrowding. He sent her home to deal with psychological problems. Inmates typically wait up to a week to see a doctor, and they`re only let out on a stretcher for serious medical conditions.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Other than that, you`re in there. You`re in there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROOKS: Folks, let`s not forget why Paris Hilton is in jail, OK? She`s in there because she violated the law, drunk driving, OK? I mean, this is not -- you know, boo-hoo for Paris Hilton. I tell you what, I think it`s good for her. I think it will be good for her in the long run. And hopefully, she`ll be able to learn something. But you know, this whole -- this dumb, this spiritual thing -- I don`t buy it. I mean, look at these people right here. These are all victims of drunk drivers.

Joining us right now is a very, very special guest. His name is Glynn Birch from Orlando, Florida. He`s MADD`s national president. His son, his 21-month-old son was killed by a drunk driver. Thanks for joining us tonight, Glynn.

GLYNN BIRCH, MADD NATIONAL PRESIDENT: Thanks for having me, Mike.

BROOKS: Well, you know, Glynn, I`m sorry. You know, I was -- I was in law enforcement for 26 years. I`m not buying this act. I`m sorry. I`m just not buying this act. And you represent all of these people we see here. You know, we see veterans. We see little children. And your son -- your son, killed by a drunk driver. What do you have to say to Paris Hilton tonight?

BIRCH: Well, first of all, you know, Paris Hilton`s just one of 1.4 million arrests due to drunk driving. You know, I`ll tell you, being in jail has a very sobering effect, so I`m -- you know, look -- the comments that she had on the Barbara Walters show, they`re encouraging. But if really Paris wants to take -- get the public trust again, once she gets out, we need to have an ignition inter (ph) lock placed on her vehicle. She should voluntarily ask for an ignition inter lock.

BROOKS: Well, how many states have that ignition inter lock right now, Glynn?

BIRCH: You know, currently -- just two years ago, New Mexico was the first state, and it had a 12 percent reduction in deaths, which is very encouraging. We want mandated that every state had that, and we`ve had success because of our campaign to eliminate drunk driving, which our listeners can read about on our Web site at MADD.org, there are about three or four states that are on board this year. Arizona has passed. Illinois has a very good model that should be passing very soon. Ohio looks good, too.

So there are a number of states that are coming aboard, knowing that there is a problem and finding a way to resolve it. The ignition inter locks have proven to be very successful, up to 90 percent success rate.

BROOKS: Ninety percent success rate?

BIRCH: Ninety percent success, when they`re used.

BROOKS: That`s huge. That`s huge. You know, I think -- I`m all for that kind of thing. And you know, right now -- but California -- California`s such a liberal state, I doubt if we`ll ever see it.

BIRCH: We need it in California.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NANCY GRACE, HOST: Breaking news. As you know by now, we are live at LA`s Twin Towers correctional facility, where celebutante Paris Hilton sits in a medical wing after a rumble at the courthouse. Bitter protest of two- tiered justice system going on. As you know by now, Paris Hilton has walked free from ladies` lock-up, in direct opposition to a judge`s order. But 24 hours later, that same judge has ordered Paris Hilton back to jail. Hilton, in tears, is asked to explain her mystery illness night. We learn it`s depression, alleged ADD and a fit of claustrophobia.

Hilton has been ordered to jail screaming and crying, but as the population is demanding a recall on the sheriff who set her free, Hilton is sitting in a private room with a window view. This is the wing normally reserved for the acutely ill.

Back out to Sibila Vargas, CNN correspondent. What I don`t understand is how attention deficit disorder equals acute illness, Sibila.

VARGAS: I`m not sure. And what`s even worse is this report of claustrophobia. I think anybody who`s in a 12-by-8-foot cell is going to experience some claustrophobia. I mean, that`s just par for the course. But you know, I think a lot of people are just outraged, outraged like you are, Nancy, that this woman -- again, you know, it`s just one thing after another, one surprise after another.

BROOKS: And to Mike Walker. As you all know, Mike Walker, senior editor with "The National Enquirer." I`m very disturbed, Mike, at what is clearly a two-tiered justice system here. The sheriff is under a recall now. What I don`t understand is how they can possibly equate Hilton`s claustrophobia and attention deficit with an acute medical illness.

WALKER: Well, Nancy, last night, when I finished my radio show here in Los Angeles on KABC, I was followed -- the next radio show is Leo Terrell, the civil rights attorney. I`m sure you remember him and know him. And he said something that just absolutely stunned me. He said this medical excuse will not wash that Lee Baca is giving. And by the way, Leo Terrell is a big supporter of Lee Baca. But he said, Uh-uh. He said, I have sued the county for having medical treatment refused to people who were dying of gunshot wounds.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is she handcuffed?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, she was cuffed.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A disheveled Paris Hilton in handcuffs and tears. Reporters and photographers trampling each other.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jeez, look at these people.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A ride to the courthouse, broadcast live in true L.A. celebrity style, but it`s a surprisingly public and bitter brawl between Judge Michael Sauer and L.A. Sheriff Lee Baca, who released Hilton to house arrest, that`s raising serious questions about whether Paris Hilton`s celebrity earned her star treatment or a stiff sentence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Showed herself to (INAUDIBLE) as someone who perhaps needed a lesson, and he gave her a sentence which, under the circumstances, probably was not entirely unreasonable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: We are live here at L.A.`s Twin Towers facility, right behind me, where Paris Hilton is now enjoying a city view with a room as big as a hotel room, a private bath, a private sink, a special menu, ping-pong, "The Wall Street Journal," magazines, and I hear today that, instead of being in a five-hour line like all of us regular people, her family was whisked straight through, breaking in, in front of all of the other people there to see their families.

I don`t know about you, but if you love our justice system, I can tell you this much: This is not what Lady Justice envisioned, justice for the rich and powerful versus justice for the rest of us? That is not OK.

Out to the lines, Judy in Texas, hi, Judy.

CALLER: Hi. Nancy, I love your show.

GRACE: Hi, dear, what`s your question? Thank you, Ms. Judy.

CALLER: I want to know, how long has they diagnosed Paris Hilton with depression? Has she been on pills before this or just started them? And also, all the ads I`ve seen on TV, you don`t drink when you`re on antidepressants, and it`s very, very dangerous. So I was just wondering, has she been on the pills for long or just started them?

GRACE: Judy, that`s an excellent question. That`s a good question any trial lawyer would ask. Let me throw that out to Mike Walker with "The National Enquirer." Mike, the last I saw she was walking the carpet at the MTV red carpet awards, anything but depressed. So was this a sudden depression?

MIKE WALKER, "NATIONAL ENQUIRER": Oh, yes.

GRACE: And, yes, I`m very sarcastic, because I`m very disturbed about this two-tiered justice system.

WALKER: Well, we all are, Nancy. In this particular case, talking about drugs, "The National Enquirer" is out this week with a story of how Paris was downing wine and valium at a party at Alan Thicke`s son`s house, Robin Thicke, on May 10th, before she went into jail the first time. Paris Hilton obviously is suffering from claustrophobia, a mild depression, just like other people who go into jail.

GRACE: That is what happens in jail, Mike Walker.

WALKER: It is nothing that I have ever seen. That is exactly.

GRACE: You`re in a cell.

WALKER: That`s right. That`s right. And this is one time I can`t blame Al Sharpton for saying, if she was poor or black, she would still be in the slammer.

GRACE: Well, you know, it`s not just that. Let`s unleash the lawyers. Out to Susan Moss. It`s not just minorities. It`s anybody that is poor or middle class that cannot pay for this type of treatment. That would include a lot of my family and relatives that can`t afford to get the kind of treatment that Hilton is getting. And I wonder how those people felt today, Susan Moss, when they were waiting in line for five hours to see their loved ones, and the Hiltons cut up to the front of the line -- Moss?

SUSAN MOSS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: It is wrong for Paris Hilton to be in the glamour-slammer medical facility, where she has a room with a view and is playing ping-pong. What`s next, maid turndown service, perhaps a mint before she goes to sleep? It is absolutely outrageous! This two-tier system is what is absolutely wrong with the L.A. judicial system. But I will tell you this: Just like the MasterCard commercial, the fact that she`s in some type of facility at all, that`s priceless.

GRACE: You know what? You`re right. You`re right that she even made it to a facility.

Out to you, Lauren Lake. There are very few times that I am actually embarrassed of the justice system, but to see her getting this kind of treatment, when everybody else with the same type of sentence would never hide on a medical ward -- this is a ward for the acutely medically ill, people that are getting chemotherapy, ladies that are giving birth behind bars. That is what this ward is for; it is not for someone with dry skin and claustrophobia.

LAUREN LAKE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: No, Nancy, this is absolutely ridiculous, and I find it insulting. And I think the American people do, too, which is why there`s so much outrage about this. I mean, how dare they do this, not just behind closed doors, but right in front of our faces! We`re watching them, and they`re still giving her preferential treatment.

I mean, let`s be honest, art sometimes imitates life, and life sometimes imitates art. Well, she did a show called "The Simple Life," and that`s what she needs to be living right now, the simple life, no "Wall Street Journal," no room with a view. She needs to sit somewhere and think about herself so she can figure out how to stop running around America acting like a knucklehead, when all of our young girls are looking up to her.

GRACE: And out to you, Joe Lawless, veteran defense attorney out of the Philly jurisdiction. Joe, look, I know that normally you and I take different sides, but you and I both know that the next best thing a defense attorney can do, other than keeping his client out of jail, is to get them into the medical wing. Explain.

JOE LAWLESS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, the medical wing is obviously going to give them a little bit better facility to be in. It`s going to be cleaner. It`s going to be a little bit more spacious, et cetera. But I think one thing that everyone is overlooking here, Nancy, everyone seems to want to blame Paris Hilton. And the fact is, she`s not making the decisions on where she`s being placed. It`s someone within the L.A. justice system.

You and I both know that the way the system is set up, if you have money and can hire the right lawyers, we have the best criminal justice system in America. There`s no question about that. That`s never going to change. But the Hilton family is getting castigated here for something that I don`t think is entirely their fault. I think it might be the fault of the sheriff. I think it might be the fault of the system out there that completely gives this sort of treatment to celebrities.

But to slam Paris Hilton because she`s being put in a medical ward when apparently there`s a diagnosis of ADD and claustrophobia isn`t entirely fair. Whether it`s a legitimate diagnosis, that`s another problem.

GRACE: That is total B.S.

LAWLESS: Oh, no, it`s not.

GRACE: We saw her on the red carpet. We saw her on the red carpet just before she went into the slammer. She was not depressed. Attention deficit disorder? That`s not a mental illness.

LAWLESS: I agree with you.

GRACE: Claustrophobia? Forget it. But I do agree with you on one thing: The fault is not on Paris Hilton totally or on her family. I`m going to go out to a man that has started a petition to recall the sheriff in this case, and he has darn well got plenty of standing to do it. Out to Andrew Ahlering, sir, thank you for being with us. Tell me about your petition to recall the sheriff over this.

ANDREW AHLERING, STARTING PETITION TO RECALL L.A. SHERIFF: Yes, Nancy. We`ve launched a petition, and we`re currently in process in circulating it, to put Lee Baca on the ballot for a recall election to remove him from office.

GRACE: And how is it going? What`s the status of it right now?

AHLERING: The status is going well. We are currently circulating the first document that`s required by California law, and that is notice of intent to circulate a recall petition. We`re collecting signatures on that. And once we have enough signatures on that, we`ll send that to the sheriff, and file that with the county, and then the process will continue to proceed.

GRACE: And that is at www.recallbaca.com. Out to Sibila Vargas, CNN correspondent who has been on the case from the very, very beginning, Sibila, what has been the reaction to this?

SIBILA VARGAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, there`s been outrage from all over. I mean, as you can imagine, the world was really outraged when they heard about this. There was Najee Ali, a community leader out here in Los Angeles, that spoke out about that. Of course, Al Sharpton got into the mix, as well.

And like you said, he was not only talking about it being a race issue, but an economic issue. I mean, who is sent home to serve house detention just because you`re not comfortable with your surroundings?

But let`s get back to Sheriff Lee Baca. I mean, this is a man that, doing my research, I`ve learned that he`s actually walked the red carpet for both the Golden Globes and also the Academy Awards. He`s got a lot of celebrity attention, a lot of celebrity contacts. So, you know, I think his motivations are definitely in question right now.

And, in fact, the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs has actually said that Baca has an image problem. And, again, talking about what Mike Walker said, this was, you know, back when Mel Gibson was busted for suspicion of DUI, that first report said nothing about his anti-Semitic rants. And Baca was, of course, implicated in that.

GRACE: In other words, they doctored the report on Mel Gibson. You`re absolutely correct.

Out to the lines, out to Maggie in Texas. Maggie, are you there?

CALLER: Yes, ma`am, it`s in Tennessee. And I want...

GRACE: Hi, dear, what`s your question?

CALLER: I want to know why it costs so much for her to be in jail compared, you know, to the average person, like myself? And I think what you do for us is great.

GRACE: Thank you, dear. And your question is why is it costing so much for Paris Hilton to be in jail, correct?

CALLER: Yes, ma`am, compared to the average person, like myself, if I had to go.

GRACE: Yes. Out to Mike Walker, is it because she`s in the medical wing for the acutely ill? Is that the expense?

MARSHALL: Yes. Yes, that`s it, Nancy. If she was in where she just was, it would be $99 bucks a day. Now it`s $1,009 a day. It`s about 11 times more the taxpayers are paying to have her in the Hilton Hotel, so to speak. Justice is blonde, Nancy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWSBREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was crying on Friday, as she was being hauled back to jail, but over the weekend Paris Hilton, apparently she`s toughened up. Maybe a little visit from her sister, Nikki, gave her that extra motivation she needed. Paris telling her lawyers to forget the appeal, saying she`s dealing with her ordeal supposedly through spirituality. Paris Hilton also released her own statement over the weekend, saying, "Being in jail is by far the hardest thing I have ever done. During the past several days, I`ve had a lot of time to think and believe that I am learning and growing from this experience."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. We are joining you live tonight from L.A. Right behind me is the Twin Towers ladies facility, where Paris Hilton right now is enjoying a room that is the size of a hotel room, a city view. She`s probably having a special menu dinner right now, followed by a little ping-pong, maybe a little magazine, "Wall Street Journal" reading. While everyone else charged and convicted of what she was charged and convicted of is over at Century regional general facility lockup, why the difference? Right now, protests all over the country about an alleged two-tiered justice system.

Out to you, Andrea Macari, clinical psychologist, what does this mean for the people that truly are acutely medically ill? The only illnesses that we have heard of regarding Paris Hilton are attention deficit disorder, depression that she apparently caught in jail, and a mild bout of claustrophobia.

ANDREA MACARI, INSTRUCTOR OF PSYCHOLOGY: Well, America, we have been hoodwinked. This is a complete and utter sham. Nancy, I see my role on your show to be an advocate for the mentally ill, but I will not sit here and allow the sheriff and Paris to disgrace all the millions of Americans who suffer from mental illness. Paris should be sitting in a jail cell and not displacing somebody else who could actually benefit from these services.

Over 50 percent of prisoners are mentally ill, and usually they don`t get anything like the treatment Paris is getting right now. And there`s no way she`s depressed, Nancy. You want to know why? It takes two weeks of showing symptoms to be diagnosed with depression. She`s only been there a couple of days.

GRACE: You know, another thing, out to Dr. Marty Mackary with Johns Hopkins, Dr. Mackary, I have been on plenty of mental wards and plenty of medical wards within jails, and those people that are there are truly ill. They need to be on the medical ward. They need medical attention. And this is just contorting our whole justice system.

DR. MARTY MACKARY, PHYSICIAN, JOHNS HOPKINS: Well, that`s right, Nancy. You know, there is medical illness and medical disease, and then there are the ups and downs of life. And hardship is not a diagnosis. Frustration and humiliation is not a medical condition. So there`s clearly a clear set of criteria for each of those diagnoses, and I hope that it doesn`t detract from the community of people that really have those diagnoses to see what`s going on.

GRACE: Take a listen to this, Doctor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA WALTERS, HOST, "THE VIEW": I asked what happened in the jail that led to her being released or reassigned to her home. She said she was not wailing, sobbing or screaming, as had been described, but she said, "I was not eating or sleeping. I was severely depressed. I felt as if I was in a cage. I was not myself. It was a horrible experience." She also told me that she had not been on antidepressants.

"How are you different?" I asked her. And she said, "I`m not the same person I was. I know now that I can make a difference, that I have the power to do that. I want to do different things when I`m out of here."

This part I thought particularly interesting. "I used to act dumb. It was an act, and that act is no longer cute. It is not who I am, nor do I want to be that person for the young girls who looked up to me." She said, "I am 26 years old now, and it is a different time." She said, "I have become much more spiritual. God has given me this new chance."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: That is Barbara Walters on "The View" after an alleged conversation with Paris Hilton`s mom. Out to the lines, Gila in Montana, hi, Gila.

CALLER: Question: Is the big ha-ha that, once she`s released, she`s no longer on probation, and she gets her driver`s license reinstated, and people should not be mad at her for getting a full house? In the...

GRACE: Not be mad at her for getting a full house? I`m not sure what that means, but I do know that she already has her driver`s license back. Out to Stacey in South Carolina, hi, Stacey.

CALLER: Hi, Nancy. I have a statement first. I have been in law enforcement in the past. All prisoners find God in jail for some reason. But my question is this: My understanding of ADHD, from having a child -- or ADD -- from having a child that has that, it`s not a mental illness. It`s a disease or it`s a thing that can be worked with through discipline. I think it`s all a line of bull.

GRACE: Out to Andrea Macari, is it considered a mental illness, ADD?

MACARI: It is technically a mental illness, but it really falls more under the neurological disorders. ADHD is caused by an understimulation of the central nervous system. That`s why it`s treated with Adderall, like what Paris reportedly is taking, which is a stimulant.

GRACE: Out to Glynn Birch, the MADD, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, national president. Glynn, when you see this special privileged treatment to someone that is a celebrity, someone that has a lot of money, how does that make you feel, after losing your son to a drunk driver?

GLYNN BIRCH, MADD DIRECTOR: Well, you know, I talked about her comments earlier, and she said, "acting cute." Acting cute can be a deadly weapon when you talk about drunk driving. But, I mean, I don`t want to go on the medical condition. I want to focus on the real problem, and that it continues to happen in any city, and I`m talking about the preferential treatment. Someone referred to it as a catch-and-release program. When they go out and drink and drive, they`re arrested, they`re driving on a suspended driver`s license, and I`ll tell you, 50 percent to 75 percent continue to drive on a suspended license. We have to have an alcohol ignition interlock placed on the vehicle. Paris has her license now, as you talked about. She needs an alcohol ignition interlock, voluntarily. Please, Paris, let us know that you got the message.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was crying on Friday, as she was being hauled back to jail, but over the weekend, Paris Hilton, apparently she`s toughened up. Maybe a little visit from her sister, Nikki, gave her that extra motivation she needed. Paris telling her lawyers to forget the appeal, saying she`s dealing with her ordeal supposedly through spirituality.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Welcome back. We are live here in L.A. Right behind me, the L.A. Twin Towers, where Paris Hilton is probably enjoying a special menu and a little game of ping-pong. As you know by now, she`s set to fulfill her sentence in the ward for the acutely medically ill.

Mike Brooks, former fed, former D.C. cop, will she serve the rest of her sentence out in this manner? She is not ill.

MIKE BROOKS, FORMER D.C. POLICE: Well, I`ll tell you what, Nancy, if they decide that she`s competent physically and mentally competent, maybe they send her back there. But it sounds as -- she`s got 14 days left. And, you know, who knows if she doesn`t get off for more good time? I doubt it. But she`ll probably just wind up serving her time there, most likely.

GRACE: And to you, Mike Walker with "The National Enquirer," do you think it`s written in stone that she will get this preferential treatment for the rest of her stay?

WALKER: Yes, absolutely. There`s no question about it at all. You can see what`s going on here, Nancy. Calls are being made back and forth between and among important people. And there is no question that Paris Hilton will continue to get preferential treatment.

GRACE: Important people? Who is important people, Mike Walker? What about all of the other inmates? And what about all of the other families? Are they somehow not as important as Paris Hilton?

WALKER: That is the message that is being given to us, that other citizens of this country do not enjoy the same privileges that Paris Hilton and the Hilton family do. It`s a clear message.

GRACE: Mike Walker, joining us from "The National Enquirer."

Everyone, let`s stop to remember Army Sergeant Jason Schumann, just 23 years old, Holly, Minnesota, killed, Iraq. Enlisting straight from high school on a second tour, always with a big smile, loved the tuba, sailboats, art, historical fiction, and running cross-country. Leaves behind widow, Laura, 2-year-old son, Joe, dad, Jim, mom, Candy. Jason Schumann, American hero.

Thank you to all of our guests, but most of all for you being with us tonight. We`re joining you live here in L.A., where we may be witnessing a two-tiered justice system. It is wrong. See you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. Until then, good night, friend.

END

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