Atlantic City mayor's home raided, police mom
Laquita Small was searched Thursday by local law enforcement at the home of Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. (D) and his wife, Dr. Marty Small.
Small was appointed mayor of the casino city by the Atlantic City Council in 2019 after Frank Gilliam (D) resigned after pleading guilty to wire fraud and stealing $87,000 from a charitable youth basketball program. Police at the direction of the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office searched Small's Presbyterian Avenue home this morning, local media reported.
A search warrant was issued," said Ed Jacobs, the mayor's attorney. "They [the search warrant] were one-sided. If neither party has an opportunity to comment, nothing should be construed as litigation. "
Spokespeople for the city and police declined to comment on the ongoing investigation. Jacobs said he is still reviewing the search warrant.
"Search warrants are investigative tools. They're easy to find," Jacobs said, adding that law enforcement needs a judge to approve what's called probable cause for a search. "There will be absolutely no opportunity for those targeted by the search warrant to comment before the warrant is issued."
School Link
Although there are no reports confirming this speculation, there are rumors that the raid has nothing to do with the mayor and everything to do with his wife. La’Quetta Small is the principal of Atlantic City Public Schools.
Atlantic City High School Principal Constance Days-Chapman was recently arrested and charged with failing to report a student who reported to school administrators that he was experiencing physical and verbal abuse at home. The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office accused Days-Chapman of failing to notify child protective services after learning of the abuse.
Small completed Gilliam's term and was elected to his own four-year term in November 2021. Small was praised for cleaning up the casino and improving its security.
Small is perhaps best known as mayor for tearing down the shuttered Trump Plaza in February 2021 and making billionaire Carl Icahn pay for it. Trump's critics said the 39-story building's collapse signaled the end of the then-president's era in Atlantic City.
"This is a historic moment," Smalls said as he watched the building collapse. "It was so exciting. I got chills all over."
Small has had previous run-ins with the justice and court systems.
In 2011, Small and five others were arrested and indicted for allegedly tampering with ballots during the Atlantic City Democratic primary. He was later acquitted.
In 2021, Small and his wife were named as defendants in a mother's lawsuit against the couple. The accuser claims her daughter was sexually abused by one of Small's relatives at their home in Atlantic City. The case was later dismissed due to insufficient evidence.
In 2021, Craig Callaway, a longtime political strategist working on behalf of Small's challenger, Republican Tom Foley, posted a video in which Small appeared to threaten him. After telling Small he was "a protector of child molesters," he responded, "I'm going to yell at you."
Dirty Politics
If the raid on the small family home has nothing to do with the school scandal and everything to do with the mayor, it will be another setback for Atlantic City government.
Gilliam is the fourth Atlantic City mayor to be arrested on corruption charges since 1970.
William Summers (Dem) became mayor of Atlantic City in 1970. Three years later, he was convicted of extorting $5,000 from a small boardwalk business. The mayor was part of the infamous "A.C. 7," a group of elected leaders indicted by a federal grand jury. Summers remained in office for the final year of his term on unsupervised probation.
Just over a decade later, Michael Matthews' (D) mayoral campaign ended in March 1984 when he was recalled from prison after pleading guilty to racketeering charges. Prosecutors said Matthews used the Mafia to promote his political campaign in exchange for financial bribes.
James Usry (right) was defeated by Matthews in the 1982 election and succeeded Matthews. He didn't do any better.
Atlantic City's first African-American mayor was arrested in 1989 on charges of bribery, conspiracy, official misconduct and receiving illegal gifts. That charge was later dropped after Yuri agreed to plead guilty to failing to properly report campaign contributions.
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Source: www.casino.org
