Despite a stern ruling from a California judge that Paris Hilton would not be allowed any alternative jail methods or electronic monitoring, the socialite was "reassigned" Thursday to just that for an undisclosed "medical condition."

"I can't specifically talk about the medical situation other than to say that, yes, it played a part in this," said sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore in front of a crowd of reporters.

According to a press release issued by Whitmore, the reassignment was made possible to the Community-Based Alternatives to Custody (CBAC) Program.

Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer sentenced Hilton last month to 45 days in jail for violating probation on an alcohol-related reckless driving case. Her sentence was later reduced to 23 days and she began serving her time Sunday night at the Century Regional Detention Facility in suburban Los Angeles.

Hilton's conditions were already favorable in relation to the average inmate in the 2,200-person facility, as she was serving time in the "special needs" unit. The unit contains 12 two-person cells reserved for celebrities and other high-profile inmates.

Harvey Levin, the managing editor at the Web site that broke the story, TMZ.com, told MSNBC that the site will be digging to find out what the medical condition is throughout the day.

Levin's initial speculation was that it was related to a psychological condition, a sentiment shared by CNN entertainment reporter Brooke Anderson.

"We got word that she had been crying a lot, saying that her 12-by-8-foot cell was very cold and very bright," Anderson told CNN. "She wasn't sleeping (and) she wasn't eating, and she did get a visit from her psychiatrist."

If the medical condition is related to a physical ailment, Anderson said that there were no indications of it at the MTV Movie Awards, just hours before she began serving her sentence.

"She looked in fairly decent spirits at the MTV Movie Awards," Anderson told CNN. "She said that she wanted to serve her time and that she wanted to face the consequences and wanted to be treated like anybody else. I don't know that that is the case now."

Angered over Hilton's reassignment, MSNBC legal analyst Susan Filan compared her treatment to a high-profile inmate who was released from prison in the last week -- after serving his sentence.

"Remember Dr. Jack Kevorkian? He was practically dying in prison and he couldn't get out," Filan told MSNBC. "He had cancer of every kind and organ, and heart failure ... this is baloney."

For the time being, it hasn't been determined what Hilton's exact medical condition is. Nonetheless, Filan questions why it requires Hilton to return to her mansion because of it, rather than be treated at the jail's infirmary.

"These county jails and prisons are equipped to deal with people's medical conditions," Filan said. "When you are incarcerated, sometimes you can even bring your prescription medicine with you. You're reassigned to their doctors. They assess you and dispense new medicines for you ... I think it's nothing other than special treatment."

Michael Musto, a reporter for the Village Voice, told MSNBC that Hilton's publicity team doesn't have to worry about spinning the story of her reassignment because he believes those publicity specialists are the ones behind it.

"She has a brilliant team of people behind her who made her into a victim and complained about whatever ailment it was, whether it was mental -- because she was visited by a shrink ... or the 400 people that got a staph infection before she got in there," Musto told MSNBC. "Believe it or not, there are people with really serious medical ailments in prison -- people with AIDS and cancer and all kinds of things. They are not pampered. They are not given special treatment. They are just told to stay in their cell."