Celebrity heiress Paris Hilton is to leave jail on Tuesday after almost three-and-a-half weeks behind bars, authorities in California have said.

She was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol last September and was given probation, which she violated several times by driving with a suspended license. The reality TV star was sentenced on 3 June to 45 days in jail for violating probation on a driving ban.

But crowded jail conditions and time off for good behavior will mean that she is released after 24 days.

The 26-year-old was briefly freed on medical grounds earlier this month, but was sent back to jail by a court. Now she will be released on 26 June. Before she was led screaming from court, she was told she would have to serve her full sentence.

Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, who ordered her release, is due to appear before the county’s board of supervisors, which is investigating the issue, on Tuesday. Mr. Baca, who wanted Hilton to complete her sentence at home, said the heiress was being turned into a “criminal justice football”.

But opponents say she was given preferential treatment because of her status.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department did not say at what time Hilton would be released.