Atlantic County Prosecutor William Reynolds is under fire after the acquittal of Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small, and the road to dismissal of the charges against Schools Superintendent La'Quetta Small and Atlantic City High School Principal Constance Days-Chapman.
Atlantic County's prosecutor faces some major battles this week, in the aftermath of the biggest loss of his term.
It started with the Atlantic City Branch of the NAACP and religious leaders calling for Prosecutor William Reynolds to step down at a press conference Monday.
Councilman Kaleem Shabazz, who heads the local NAACP chapter, alleged the prosecutor was politically and possibly racially motivated in charging "three of Atlantic City's top leaders" in a child abuse case.
While Shabazz said there are positive things the prosecutor has done, this broke any trust between the county office and city residents.
The Monday morning news conference was supposed to be held at St. James AME Church, but citing "technical difficulties," it was moved to the Second Baptist Church, whose pastor is the Rev. Collins Days.
Rev. Days' daughter is Dr. Constance Days-Chapman, the Atlantic City High School principal the prosecutor charged with official misconduct for failure to report abuse allegations made by the mayor and schools superintendent's daughter.
Days also is a county commissioner.
Reynolds previously asked that Days recuse himself on Board of Commissioner votes involving the Prosecutor's Office, but withdrew the request after pushback from the NAACP.
It does not seem he will abide by their latest request for him to step down.
"Upon taking my oath (in 2022), I swore to uphold the laws of the State of New Jersey and the United States, and I intend to keep doing so with integrity and independence," Reynolds wrote in statement released to media. "The Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office rejects any further allegation that its decisions are driven by political or racial considerations."
The move comes less than two months after a jury acquitted Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small in a child abuse and witness tampering case that made national headlines for nearly two years.
Small and his supporters have alleged from the beginning that the case was not about justice but politics tinged with racism motivated by those who have been unsuccessful in defeating the mayor at the ballot.
Reynolds has said it was an attempt to protect an abuse victim and show that no one is above the law.
The not guilty verdict on all counts led the Prosecutor's Office to move for the dismissal of related charges against Small's wife, Atlantic City Schools Superintendent Dr. La'Quetta Small, and Dr. Constance Days-Chapman.
The decision to drop the charges apparently took too long for Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson, who made his frustration clear on multiple radio shows and in alleged communication he had with Reynolds behind the scenes.
Levinson's actions constitute interference with his office, Reynolds alleges in a civil complaint moving for an injunction "to restrain unlawful interference by the Atlantic County Executive in the exercise of prosecutorial discretion."
The push to drop the remaining cases started the day after the acquittal, with a phone call initiated by Atlantic County Counsel Lynne Hughes and Deputy County Counsel Arthur Murray, Reynolds' complaint states.
READ THE PROSECUTOR'S COMPLAINT
"They stated that the Atlantic County Executive wanted me to take into consideration the taxpayers of Atlantic County when deciding whether to prosecute the remaining two matters related to the State v. Marty Small prosecution," Reynolds wrote in a memorandum meant to memorialize the conversation.
Even both attorneys "stated that they did not agree that the call should have been made at all, and that even if such a call were to be made, they believed the timing was poor and should not have occurred until next week or after the holiday," the memo continues.
As a result, Reynolds wants Levinson barred from discussing ongoing cases, and for his office to have funding for outside counsel for the remainder of his time in office.
In the county's response, Murray calls the filing "a vague and ambiguous cause of action."
The executive would not know what cases are off limits and prosecutor has not identified when outside representation would be necessary.
If the court would decided outside counsel is necessary, there is no reason that cannot be funded within the office's budget, Murray wrote.
Additionally, as much as $17,499 can be spent without the need for approval by the county Board of Commissioners.
As for that board, it is not clear what support the prosecutor has there, although at least one member definitely is not on his side, Chapman-Days' father, the Rev. Days.
The prosecutor previously asked that the board have Days abstain from any votes involving his office, but has since dropped that request.
Days was at the press conference Monday, which was moved to his church. He did not speak. Days-Chapman, the mayor and superintendent all were in attendance, but did not comment.
Bishop R. Fulton Hargrove, who heads the Fellowship of Churches, was supposed to attend but Shabazz said there was a conflict. Instead, the councilman read a statement.
This is not the first time the NAACP and Fellowship have rallied around the group.
The NAACP and National Action Network held a rally for the Smalls after their home was raided but before charges were filed.
At that rally, Shabazz alleged racism in the prosecutor's actions.
But about six weeks later, Shabazz led the NAACP in honoring Reynolds.
Shabazz authored the media advisory for Monday's gathering to denounce Reynolds.
Meanwhile, the prosecutor will spend part of the day in mediation with Levinson concerning the civil claim.
