Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small and his superintendent wife pleaded not guilty Thursday to criminal charges connected to the alleged abuse of their teenage daughter.
Atlantic City's first family arrived at the Atlantic County Criminal Courthouse in Mays Landing together, including the alleged victim.
The girl mostly avoided the crowd of cameras awaiting her parents' first court appearance on the charges they have faced for months. But her younger brother did enter the courtroom briefly, wearing his Atlantic City High School Vikings football jersey.
The couple is accused of assaulting the then-16-year-old girl, with the mayor facing an aggravated assault charge for allegedly knocking her unconscious in a beating involving a broom.
The defense has received thousands of pages of discovery the mayor's attorney, Ed Jacobs, told the judge. They also received the grand jury transcripts.
Dr. Small's attorney, Michael Schreiber, said he had dropped off electronic equipment to the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office for them to copy the media discovery for the defense, which Assistant Prosecutor Elizabeth Fischer described as "quite large."
Mayor Small has insisted the case is one of a family nature, not a criminal one.
The same sentiment was reiterated in a written statement Jacobs handed out to media after the arraignment.
It said that the couple pleaded not guilty "simply because they are entirely innocent."
Marty and La'Quetta Small talk before their arraignment.The statement claimed the two "wear targets on their backs" as a result of their standing in the community.
"Because to some investigators, the high profiles earned by Marty and La'Quetta present an opportunity for a headline-grabbing investigation," it reads. "Even if that means meddling into personal and private family matters, such as a mom and dad doing their best to manage the challenges of raising a teenage child.
"This is something no other mom or dad is ever made to suffer, but those other moms and dads do not have the public profiles of Marty and La'Quetta," it continued. "We are confident that fair-minded jurors will quickly see that parenting struggles are not criminal events and will agree on the innocence of both Marty and La'Quetta."
Because of the large amount of evidence in the case, Superior Court Judge Bernard DeLury set the next hearing for Jan. 16. He also said he would likely have to put out a timeline for anticipated motions in the case.
Two others have been charged in connection with not reporting the abuse allegations after the girl reported them.
High School Principal Constance Days-Chapman was arraigned last week on charges that include official misconduct and hindering.
Young previously told detectives that she saw injuries on the girl, who is her younger cousin, and knew of the issue the teen was having with her parents.
Young is due in court for a first appearance Tuesday.
