Student, 15, charged in brownie theft

MASON CITY, Iowa, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- The mother of an Iowa teenager arrested for allegedly stealing two brownies from his high school cafeteria described the charges as "a little extreme."

Jan Richey said her son, Trey, 15, was charged with fifth-degree theft Jan. 8 after administrators at Mason City High School contacted police with the theft allegations, the Mason City Globe-Gazette reported Wednesday.

"I was very surprised," Richey said of the charges against her son. "I think they're being a little extreme. A brownie costs about a dollar. I could see a few days or a week of detention, but charging him like this ... it doesn't seem right."

Steve Shrader, the Mason City Police Department school resource officer, said the school contacted police after carrying out its own investigation into the alleged crime. He said charges were pressed by officials to help deter future thefts.