Overview
- A New Jersey Superior Court jury found Marty Small not guilty of endangering the welfare of a child, aggravated assault, terroristic threats and witness tampering after multiple days of deliberations.
- Prosecutors presented photos of bruising, expert testimony calling the injuries nonaccidental and audio in which Small threatened to "earth slam" his daughter.
- Small testified that he never beat his daughter with a broom and described a struggle during which she fell, while the defense emphasized a nurse’s inability to confirm a concussion and called more than 40 character witnesses.
- Small was reelected in November and would have been required to forfeit his office if convicted.
- La'Quetta Small faces a separate trial in January on child-endangerment and simple assault charges, and high school principal Constance Days-Chapman remains charged for allegedly failing to report the teen’s initial complaint.