A former Shadyside cheering mom was sentenced Thursday for stealing thousands of dollars from the school's cheerleading organization.

Olivia Patterson pleaded guilty and was ordered to repay more than $6,900 to the Shadyside High School Cheerleaders organization. Patterson must also issue an in-person apology as part of her punishment.

Patterson appeared in court initially for a pretrial hearing on one felony count of theft. The prosecution later requested the felony be reduced to a first-degree misdemeanor theft, and that motion was sustained by Eastern Division Court Judge John Vavra.

"This is a balancing. These people need to get their money back rather than putting you in jail, which costs the taxpayers $100 per day for the 30 days you would have received," Vavra said in court. "We're trying to strike a balance between accountability and getting the money that was taken from the cheerleaders association."

Patterson said a series of unfortunate life circumstances led her to the crime.

"I don't believe that I took $6,900, but it was taken over a period of time. It just spiraled out of control," Patterson said. "This is not an unusual occurrence. It's just too tempting when you're broke."

She was ordered to pay back the money over a three-year probationary period.

Cheering mom Tricia Porter said the first red flag was raised when the association had received the checkbook and was trying to buy uniforms.

"Once we decided to compare notes from what the bank statement said to the checkbook, nothing added up," Porter said.

With regard to the in-person apology to the cheering association, Porter said it's appropriate and it shows a lesson to children.

"I think it is a good idea because the girls need to hear it, the moms need to hear it, and they need to know that she's truly sorry," Porter said. "Kids just need to know that there are consequences for what you do."

On the way out of court, Patterson did not reply when asked if she had any comment about the case now that it's over.