Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. and his wife La’Quetta Small, the superintendent of Atlantic City Public Schools, were arrested Wednesday following a grand jury indictment accusing the couple of child endangerment.
The indictment alleges that the Smalls physically and emotionally abused their teenage daughter on multiple occasions. Prosecutors claim that on January 13, 2024, Mayor Small struck his daughter with a broom multiple times. Just over a week earlier, he allegedly threw the girl down a flight of stairs. In a chilling accusation, the 50-year-old mayor is reported to have threatened to “smack the weave out” of her head. La’Quetta Small, 47, is alleged to have punched her daughter in the chest, resulting in visible bruising.
“Marty and La’Quetta are a good mom and dad raising a teenage child,” stated their attorney, Ed Jacobs. “They are totally innocent and will be totally exonerated.”
Mayor Small became the leader of Atlantic City in 2019 following Frank Gilliam’s resignation after he admitted to embezzling $86,000 from a youth basketball program he founded called the Atlantic City Starz. During his tenure, Small spearheaded the effort to demolish the former Trump Plaza casino along the Boardwalk, seen by some Trump critics as a symbolic end to the former president’s era in the city.
The Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office has charged both Smalls with child endangerment, a severe accusation carrying potential penalties of five to ten years in prison and fines up to $150,000. Compounding the scandal, Atlantic City High School Principal Constance Days-Chapman was earlier indicted for official misconduct; she allegedly failed to report the abuse after the Smalls’ daughter confided in her. Instead, Days-Chapman, a close friend of the family, only informed her boss of the girl’s complaints. Her lawyer claims she too is innocent.
Previously, rumors swirled suggesting the Smalls became enraged with their daughter due to a reported pregnancy with twins, which ended in miscarriage allegedly due to the abuse. These rumors hinted at potential homicide charges. However, the current indictment does not include these allegations. Jacobs had denounced the pregnancy reports in April, calling them an “egregious rumor.”
Significant evidence leading to the indictment came from videos captured by the daughter’s boyfriend on his iPad. In one video, Mayor Small can be heard warning, “Don’t make me hurt you!”
Jacobs asserts that Small will not step down from his mayoral position. “This indictment has absolutely nothing to do with Marty Small’s tenure as mayor,” Jacobs emphasized. “There’s no charge of corruption or any official misconduct. Marty and La’Quetta Small don’t need the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office meddling into a private family matter.”
Although this case does not involve official corruption, it adds to the string of scandals tarnishing Atlantic City’s political landscape. Since 1970, four Atlantic City mayors have faced corruption charges, involving a range of crimes from extorting small business owners for financial kickbacks to using Mafia support to fund their political campaigns.
