The mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey, and his wife have been accused this week of abusing their teenage daughter, prosecutors announced.
On Wednesday, the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office announced that Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. and his wife, La’Quetta, were indicted on several charges, including child endangerment for allegedly abusing their daughter. The mayor’s wife currently serves as the Atlantic City Superintendent for schools.
According to the Atlantic City Prosecutor’s Office, the indictment came on Tuesday following a decision by a grand jury. The indictment also accused Small of assault and terroristic threats.
Small and his wife are accused of physically and emotionally abusing their daughter on several different occasions from December to January. Their daughter was 15 to 16 years old at the time of the alleged abuse.
In a statement obtained by the Associated Press, Ed Jacobs, a lawyer for Smalls, said, “This indictment has absolutely nothing to do with Marty Small’s tenure as mayor of Atlantic City.”
“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,” Jacobs said.
“Marty and La’Quetta are a good mom and dad raising a teenage child…They are totally innocent and will be totally exonerated,” the statement added.
Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. at a press conference on January 15. The mayor and his wife have been indicted for allegedly abusing their daughter.
AP Photo/Wayne Parry/AP Photo/Wayne Parry
The statement by Jacobs did not explicitly state whether Small’s daughter was still living at home.
On January 13, 2024, prosecutors allege that Small struck his daughter multiple times in the head with a broom, causing her to lose consciousness.
According to prosecutors, a few days earlier, Small became involved in an argument with his daughter where he grabbed her head and threw her to the ground. Small also allegedly threatened to throw his daughter down the stairs. Prosecutors also alleged that Small threatened to “smack the weave out” of his daughter’s head.
The mayor, a 50-year-old Democrat, is also accused in the indictment of punching his daughter numerous times in the legs.
La’Quetta Small, 47, is accused of repeatedly punching her daughter in the chest, leaving bruises. In a separate incident, she allegedly dragged her daughter by the hair and struck her on the shoulders with a belt, leaving visible marks.
The Smalls’ indictment came just days after the principal of Atlantic City High School was also charged in connection with the same incidents. Constance Days-Chapman was indicted on charges of official misconduct, child endangerment, and other offenses for allegedly failing to report the suspected abuse of the Smalls’ daughter to state child welfare authorities, as mandated by law and school district policy.
This article includes reporting from the Associated Press.
