Lohan sent back to rehab

10/22/2010
ASSOCIATED PRESS

Lindsay Lohan sidestepped another jail stint Friday when a California judge sent the 24-year-old troubled starlet back to rehab, telling her she was an addict and faced jail time if she relapsed again.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elden S. Fox ordered Lohan to remain at the Betty Ford Center until Jan. 3 and report back to court in late February.

A prosecutor had advocated a six-month jail sentence for the Mean Girls star, but Fox opted for rehab after reviewing filings by probation and rehab officials and a letter written by Lohan, who cried after hearing the sentence.

The judge acknowledged that Lohan has been in-and-out of court and rehab since a pair of high-profile arrests in 2007. He told the actress that he would not be manipulated by her, but was giving her a final chance to stay clean.