Atlantic City councilman acquitted of voter fraud

MAYS LANDING, N.J. - A jury cleared Atlantic City Councilman Marty Small and five codefendants of all charges Monday in a voter-fraud trial in which they had been accused of trying to steal the 2009 Democratic mayoral primary by tampering with absentee ballots.

It was the second time in five years that Small was found innocent of voter fraud. He was acquitted of similar charges in 2006 involving a mayoral election in which he was not a candidate

"These were trumped-up charges from the very beginning," said Small, who left the courtroom teary-eyed and loudly clapping his hands. Referring to the two juries that acquitted him in trials five years apart, Small said: "There's 30 different people - total strangers - that have told the state to take their charges and run somewhere. I was hoping for a fair jury, and I knew they would do the right thing."

Small must decide within a month whether to run for reelection for his City Council seat. He said he had not decided whether in two years he would again seek to become mayor of the nation's second-largest gambling resort.

"I'm not sure of any political aspirations, to be honest," he said. "That's a decision I'll have to make with my family."

The trial spanned more than five months.

Small and five campaign volunteers - LaQuay Zahir, Floyd Tally, Tracy Pijuan, Toni Dixon, and James Quirk - had been accused of trying to steal the June 2009 Democratic mayoral primary election by tampering with or manipulating absentee ballots intended for voters who were confined at home or too ill to make it to the polls on Election Day.

Small was trounced in the election by the incumbent, Lorenzo Langford.

In an indictment handed up in September 2009, and in their opening statements at the trial, the Attorney General's Office said it would show the defendants had formed what they called "the secret army" of conspirators bent on stealing the election through absentee-ballot fraud.

Each of the defendants was charged with conspiracy, election fraud, absentee-ballot fraud, tampering with public records, falsifying records, and forgery. Several also were charged with hindering apprehension relating to allegedly false testimony they gave to a grand jury.

When the charges were announced, it shone a renewed spotlight on a city renowned for political corruption dating back a century. The hit HBO series Boardwalk Empire chronicled the exploits of a character based on Enoch "Nucky" Johnson, the resort's real-life political and rackets boss who made sure vices of every type were protected in Atlantic City through paid-off authorities in the 1920s and '30s. In recent decades, numerous Atlantic City councilmen and mayors were arrested on corruption charges.

But in Small's case, little of what was promised by the prosecution materialized in the trial, and some of the state's star witnesses fizzled. One became ill on the witness stand, suddenly rushing to the bathroom during testimony, then appearing to try to vomit into a trash can in the courtroom.

Another witness, a cocaine dealer who secretly recorded numerous conversations with Small and others that were a large part of the prosecution's case, appeared to have dozed off on the witness stand at one point, although there was vehement disagreement between the defense and prosecution over whether he was actually sleeping.

That witness, Eddie Colon, had been facing a prison sentence of 20 years to life before reaching a plea deal with prosecutors that could have him out of jail in as little as six months.

The defense said Colon had every incentive to lie and say whatever the state wanted him to say in order to shorten his prison term. Prosecutors said the only obligation Colon had was to testify truthfully.

"We are disappointed but must respect the verdict of the jury," Attorney General Paula Dow said. "The prosecutors, detectives, and other personnel assigned to this case gave it their all in the interest of safeguarding fair elections and the fundamental right of citizens to vote. I commend them for the skill and dedication with which they conducted this trial and the underlying investigation."

Six other defendants still face charges in the case. The state agreed to break the trial into groups of six. Two others had pleaded guilty.

Assistant Attorney General Robert Czepiel Jr. said he could not discuss the verdict. A spokesman for Dow said he could not say whether the state planned to proceed with the second half of the trial against the six remaining defendants.