quote: "I personally believe she is so incredibly embarrassed by her actions"
She is not. Like you will hear over and over, if their lips are moving, they are lying.
The manipulation is part of the drug use. Stealing - well if someone walked into your mothers house and stole $15K worth of her belongings - would she press charges ? This child is family but that doesn't matter in this case. She is essentially gone. The drugs take over the mind. This may be her only chance at survival but never the less, she committed a crime. She will commit more. Your mother has the duty to show her the consequences.
Done with love. Maybe next time she will have someone else break in and something worse could happen .... it's a constant thing. If there is a dollar to be stolen ... it will be.