After showing up at the MTV Movie Awards on Sunday afternoon, the Hollywood socialite made another surprise appearance to the L.A. County Sheriff, little before midnight, and checked herself in jail two days earlier than she was legally supposed to.

The 26-year-old heiress went straight from the MTV Movie Awards to her parents' house at 10:30 p.m. and together with her mother Kathy, sister Nicky and her lawyer, Richard Hutton, she was taken to Men’s Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles where she officially surrendered and then driven to the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood.

Hilton is expected to serve three-weeks for violating her probation in an alcohol-related reckless driving case, just half the time she was initially ordered to serve due to state rules allowing shorter sentences for good behavior.

"I am trying to be strong right now," she told reporters on the red carpet earlier that afternoon. "I'm ready to face my sentence. Even though this is a really hard time, I have my family, my friends and my fans to support me, and that's really helpful."

According to the sheriff’s spokesman, Steve Whitmore, Hilton was easy to work with.

"Her demeanor was helpful. She was focused, she was cooperative," he said.

She will be held in the "special needs" unit of the jail, away from the other inmates, in a concrete building containing 12 two-person cells reserved for police officers, public officials, celebrities and other high-profile inmates.

"I did have a choice to go to a pay jail," Hilton said Sunday, without giving details. "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, to show that I can do it and I'm going to be treated like everyone else. I'm going to do the time, I'm going to do it the right way."

So far, "The Simple Life" star does not have a cellmate, Whitmore said.

Hilton's lawyer has released the following statement: "I am ready to face the consequences of violating probation. During the past few weeks, I have had a lot of time to think and have come to realize I made some mistakes. This is an important point in my life and I need to take responsibility for my actions. In the future, I plan on taking more of an active role in the decisions I make. I want to thank my family, friends and fans for their continued support. Although I am scared, I am ready to begin my jail sentence."