Broncos safety charged with cheating at Nevada casino

Denver Broncos safety Quinton Carter was charged with three felonies over the weekend after authorities alleged he cheated at craps in a casino near Las Vegas.

The 24-year-old safety was arrested at the Texas Station casino on Saturday night. Security officials say they have tape of Carter adding $5 chips to three bet stacks after the dice had been rolled.

He denied any wrongdoing to police.

According to the Associated Press, Carter faces three counts of committing a fraudulent act in a gaming establishment, a felony that can bring a prison sentence of one to six years.

Is it just me, or does that penalty sound a tad excessive? I don't mean to diminish the seriousness of the charges, defend any potential thief or support someone who'd be dumb enough to allegedly cheat in a place where there's more cameras than a paparazzi convention. Still, it's three $5 bets. That's $15. Vegas has to defend itself against cheaters, of course, but the movies said they did that by having Don Rickles stand guard while Robert DeNiro bashes your hand with a hammer, not by pursuing excessive charges against someone playing cheap craps tables.

Carter said he was confident he'd be cleared. On Twitter, he wrote he was "truly sorry for any negative attention this has brought to the Broncos, our fans and the league,"