Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small and Wife Will Go to Trial Over Child Endangerment Charges

Posted on: March 14, 2025, 12:32h. 

Last updated on: March 14, 2025, 12:32h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.
  • Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small and his wife are facing criminal charges
  • The Smalls allegedly beat their teenage daughter
  • The Smalls have pleaded not guilty

Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. (D) and his wife, Dr. La’Quetta Small, the superintendent of Atlantic City Public Schools, are headed to trial on an array of child endangerment charges.

Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small court case
Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. is accused of striking his teenage daughter in the head repeatedly with a broomstick, causing her to lose consciousness. The mayor denies the criminal allegations. (Image: Getty)

The Smalls appeared via Zoom in Atlantic County Superior Court this morning where Judge Bernard DeLury scheduled their final pretrial conference for May 2, 2025, with the trial to begin formally on May 14. On Friday, the Smalls’ attorneys sought to suppress certain evidence and for DeLury to recuse himself since he was the judge who authorized the search warrants used for the raid of the Small home a year ago this month.

DeLury denied the recusal request and also rejected the motion to squash evidence seized from Smalls’ Chevrolet Suburban.

Casino Town Mayor Allegations

Small has served as mayor of Atlantic City since October 2019 when the City Council appointed him to the position after Frank Gilliam resigned after he admitted to stealing $86,000 from a nonprofit basketball program he founded. In November 2021, Small won his first four-year term via the people.

As mayor, Small is the chief lawmaker of the casino town under the mayor-council municipal government arrangement. His powers, however, are limited because Atlantic City remains under the state’s control, a takeover that dates back to 2010.

Small and his wife are accused of abusing their teenage daughter. The allegations include reports that the Smalls threw the teen down a flight of stairs, punched her in the chest, hit her in the head with a broomstick that resulted in her losing consciousness, dragged her by the hair, and made verbal threats. Atlantic County prosecutors say there is video and audio evidence to substantiate those claims, as the teen’s boyfriend reportedly captured some of the abuse via Facetimes.

The Smalls have pleaded not guilty. Their attorney, Jordan Barbone, says they are “only guilty of good parenting.”

The mayor is additionally charged with witness tampering after he allegedly told his daughter to “do him a favor” and “twist up” the story.

If the mayor is found guilty on all accounts, with his charges additionally including making third-degree terroristic threats, aggravated assault, and disorderly persons simple assault, Small would face years in prison and fines up to $150,000.

2025 Atlantic City Election

Small might be found innocent on the child endangerment charges but the allegations nonetheless have likely lengthened his odds of winning reelection in November. Small will face a primary challenger in former Unite Here Local 54 President Bob McDevitt, who is also running as a Democrat.

McDevitt led the casino union for almost three decades until he retired in March 2023 to battle health issues. McDevitt says he’s healthy again after overcoming a severe bout of sepsis that resulted in the amputation of his right foot.

Since 1990, Atlantic City has had just one Republican mayor — Don Guardian, who served one term from 2014 through 2017 after he was defeated by Gilliam. Guardian is now a state assemblyman representing Atlantic County in Trenton. Many Republicans in the county are encouraging Guardian to get in the 2025 Atlantic City mayoral race.