AC High principal indicted on charges she failed to report alleged child abuse from AC Mayor, wife

The principal of Atlantic City High School has been indicted by a grand jury following accusations that she did not disclose a student's reports of abuse at the hands of their parents and instead gave the parents a "heads up."

According to court documents, those parents were identified as Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small and his wife, Atlantic City Public School Superintendent La-Quetta Small.

According to a recently released statement from the Atlantic County Prosecutors Office, Constance Days-Chapman, 39, principal of Atlantic City High School -- who also served as Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small's campaign manager and is the municipal chair of the Atlantic City Democratic Committee -- has been indicted by a grand jury on charges including endangering the welfare of a child, official misconduct, hindering the apprehension of another person and related offenses.

The charges, prosecutors said, stem from allegations that began in December of 2023, when a 15-year-old student at the school claimed she met Days-Chapman in her office and told her that that she was suffering from headaches due to being hit by her parents at home.

While the indictment doesn't name the student, court documents claim the teen involved in this incident is the daughter of Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small.

Following that incident in December, prosecutors said in a statement that "Days-Chapman did not notify either the Department of Child Protection and Permanency (DCP&P formerly known as DYFS) nor law enforcement authorities as is required by statute and school policy when a student discloses alleged child abuse to an employee at the school."

Instead, according to court documents, other school officials didn't learn of the ongoing abuse claims made by this student until the week of Jan. 22, 2024, when mental health training for students was held at Atlantic City High School.

During a training session that week, students were provided with “exit tickets” with three faces representing “happy,” “neutral,” and “sad," and, court documents claim, Small’s daughter circled the neutral face and then wrote on the back of the ticket, “abuse” and that she would “like a counselor."

Prosecutors allege the teen then told a school staff member that she had previously reported the same abuse to Days-Chapman.

However, prosecutors said that when the student's claims were brought to her, Days-Chapman "denied that the student ever disclosed the abuse to her previously," but told the school staff member she would report the issue to the DCP&P.

Prosecutors claim that another employee even offered to make the report, but Days-Chapman "insisted that she would make the notification."

Days-Chapman is also alleged to have told a school employee that she planned to give the student's parents a "heads up" that the DCP&P would be involved.

But, prosecutors claim that never happened.

Instead, law enforcement officials claim that, on the same evening she told school employees she would make that report, Days-Chapman instead met with the student's parents -- Marty Small and his wife -- outside their home.

The three met for a chat inside Days-Chapman's idling car, prosecutors allege.

Following that meeting, prosecutors claim the DCP&P didn't get any abuse report from Days-Chapman -- or anyone from the school -- about the student's abuse allegations in December of 2023 nor January of 2024.

Law enforcement officials also said they were never informed about the student's allegations of abuse by Days-Chapman, nor anyone at the school.

Instead, prosecutors claim that law enforcement officials only learned of the abuse allegations on January 24, 2024, when they were reported to police by a "non-school entity."

The Smalls have denied any wrongdoing while Days-Chapman's lawyer says she is innocent.

"Mandy is innocent of the charges in the indictment. We provided the Prosecutor’s Office with incontrovertible evidence of her innocence. The Prosecutor ignored it; the jury will not," Lee Vartan, Days-Chapman lawyer, said.

Police officials in New Jersey are asking anyone who may have information about this incident or other serious crimes to contact the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office at 609-909-7800 or go to the Prosecutor’s Office’s Website at ACPO.Tips and provide information by filling out a form anonymously.

Crime Stoppers: People can also call Crime Stoppers at 609-652-1234 or 1-800-658-8477 (TIPS) or visit the Crime Stoppers Website at http://www.crimestoppersatlantic.com.