Nicole Richie has pleaded no contest in her DUI case and been sentenced to four days in jail, following her arrest last December.

The socialite was reportedly seen driving in the wrong direction on a highway on the way back from a house party in December. When she was pulled over by police, she is said to have admitted to smoking marijuana and taking a Vicodin pill earlier in the evening.

After the case was postponed from earlier in the month, Nicole appeared in court today to make the plea and the Court Commissioner sentenced her to four days in jail - under Californian law, she had to serve time in jail because it was her second DUI conviction. She was also fined $2,000, ordered to attend a 21-day alcohol education course and has been given three years probation.

The Commissioner, Steven Lubell, said during the hearing that Nicole needed to recognise the severity of the offence: “Someone could’ve gotten killed. You need to understand that driving under the influence is extremely dangerous.”

Nicole was given the option to serve the time in a paid city jail at some point in the next two months - no date has been specified for her to surrender to authorities.

She is set to film an interview with Diane Sawyer in the next few days to be aired on Good Morning America on Thursday and Friday next week. She is expected to address both the DUI case and the recent rumours that she’s pregnant.