Paris Hilton, speaking publicly for the first time since she was handed a 45-day jail sentence for a driving related offense, described her punishment as ‘cruel’ and ‘unwarranted’.

Shocked by the punishment announced, the 26-year-old high profile celebrity heiress also fired her spokesman, veteran publicist Elliot Mintz, whom she blamed for getting her into the mess, according to media reports published Sunday.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Sauer sentenced Paris Hilton, the heiress to the Hilton hotel fortune and the daughter of real estate magnate Rick Hilton, to 45 days in jail for violating her probation in a reckless driving case. In his judgment, the judge ruled that the blonde socialite knowingly drove her blue Bentley Continental GTC with a suspended license when she was stopped by Los Angeles County deputies on February 27 for speeding and driving without headlights on.

But, at the hearing, the star of the reality TV show "The Simple Life" said her publicist Mintz had told her she was permitted to drive for work-related reasons, and she was unaware her driving privileges had been completely suspended when police stopped her for driving without headlights. Hilton said Mintz had told her she was permitted to drive for work-related reasons after the first 30 days of her license suspension late last November, and she relied on that.

Rejecting Hilton’s claims that she didn't realize her license was suspended, Judge Sauer ordered her to report to the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood, California on June 5.

"I told the truth," the heiress told photographers waiting outside her Los Angeles home on Saturday night. "I feel that I was treated unfairly and that the sentence is both cruel and unwarranted. I don't deserve this."

Hilton’s lawyer, Howard Weitzman, has planned to make appeal in order "to modify the sentence." Shocked and surprised and deeply disheartened Weitzman said his client has been singled out and the punishment doesn't fit the crime.

At the hearing, Mintz, however, took the stand in Hilton's defense, but his testimony was rejected as worthless by the judge. Nearly two days after the hearing, publicist told celebrity news Web site TMZ.com that he is no longer working for the hotel heiress.

“The day after the hearing, I sent an e-mail expressing my sadness over the ruling of the judge and the irrational sentence he imposed. In that e-mail I also offered my sincerest apology for any misunderstanding she received from me regarding the terms of her probation. To the extent that I have miscommunicated information I received from her attorneys......I am deeply and profoundly sorry,” the news web site yesterday cited Mintz as saying.

"Due to this misunderstanding, I am no longer representing Paris. For the record, I have nothing but love and respect for Paris and her family. Paris is a wonderful person and does not deserve the punishment that was handed down by the court. I only wish her my best," the statement added.

Hilton's troubles began when she was first arrested on September 7, 2006. At that time, she was driving home in her Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren after attending a charity event in Los Angeles where she had one drink, a margarita. She was charged with driving under the influence of intoxicant and driving with a blood alcohol level over California's legal limit of .08.

However, at the scene the party girl claimed that she had just one margarita, and the high alcohol content in her blood was a result of having no time to eat during a long day while making a music video for her new album, Paris. In January, she pleaded not guilty of drunk driving, and was sentenced to 36 months’ probation, alcohol education, $1,500 in fines and had her license suspended.

In February, Hilton was stopped in Sunset Boulevard for violating the traffic rules by driving without headlights. Sgt. Duane Allen Jr. of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department who ordered that time Paris to steer her car to the side of the road later impounded her $190,000 blue Bentley when they found her driving on a suspended license.

The life of the damsel has been in media spotlight ever since she entered the entertainment industry and has been subjected to criticism for her hard-partying lifestyle by almost everyone.

She is best known for starring in a fish-out-of-water reality show called, "The Simple Life" with a fellow heiress Nicole Richie, daughter of singer Lionel Richie. In November 2003, Hilton came in the headlines when a home video of her cavorting with her then-boyfriend Rick Solomon was published online.