The typically tranquil seaside ambiance of Atlantic City was shattered this Thursday when law enforcement officials descended upon the home of Mayor Marty Small Sr. and his wife, Dr. La’Quetta Small. It was an unexpected spectacle that triggered whispers of intrigue and potential scandal. Mayor Small had ascended to his position in 2019, selected by the Atlantic City Council to fill the void left by the resignation of Frank Gilliam, who had pled guilty to wire fraud and a theft that had drained $87,000 from a charitable youth basketball program.
Local outlets report that the sealing off of the Small residence, nestled on Presbyterian Avenue, followed instructions from the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office. “Search warrants were issued,” Mayor Small’s attorney, Ed Jacobs, confirmed. He hastened to caution against premature speculation. “They are one-sided. Nothing ought to be read into any proceedings in which one of the two sides has had no opportunity to respond.”
Municipal and police representatives have remained tight-lipped, refusing to comment on the active investigation. Jacobs revealed that he continues to review the issued search warrants, remarking, “They’re easy to get. People who are targets of search warrants have no opportunity to tell his or her side before the warrant is issued.”
While solid details remain elusive, rumors percolate that the raid may be targeting not the Mayor but his wife. Dr. La’Quetta Small serves as the superintendent of Atlantic City Public Schools. The recent arrest and charges lodged against Atlantic City High School Principal Constance Days-Chapman, who stands accused of failing to report a student’s claim of domestic abuse, may be tying Dr. Small to an open wound in the local education system.
Mayor Small’s legacy in office is marked by efforts to refurbish the gambling resort town and enhance its security. A defining moment of his tenure was the demolition of the defunct Trump Plaza in February 2021, an event that many perceived as a symbolic end to the former President’s legacy in Atlantic City. Small obliged billionaire Carl Icahn to foot the bill for the building’s explosive demise, a spectacle that triggered the Mayor’s confession: “This is a historic moment. It was exciting. I got chills.”
The Mayor is no stranger to legal complications. In 2011, he and five others were arrested on allegations of tampering with ballots during the Democratic primary in Atlantic City, only to be acquitted. In 2021, he and his wife were the named defendants in a lawsuit alleging sexual abuse by a relative within their home. That case was dismissed due to a lack of evidence.
The raid’s timing has raised eyebrows. It comes in the wake of a heated exchange between Mayor Small and political strategist Craig Callaway, who was representing the mayor’s Republican challenger, Tom Foley, in 2021. Callaway released a video capturing Small’s fiery rebuttal to being labeled a “child molester protector.” The Mayor retorted, “I’m going to whoop your —-a–, —-.”
If the raid implicates the mayor, it heaps further shame on the already beleaguered Atlantic City government; the dishonorable record includes four mayors arrested on corruption charges since 1970. Whatever the case, the raid’s fallout promises to shake the city’s political landscape even further.
