Accusations are flying in the race for the newly redrawn 43rd Ohio House district in what is quickly becoming one of the areas most contentious statehouse battles.

On Monday Clayton Mayor Joyce Deitering, a Republican seeking to unseat Rep. Roland Winburn, D-Harrison Twp., held a news conference denouncing two mailings paid for by the Ohio Democratic Party. Those ads said Deitering was ordered to pay $17,000 “in court costs for making false claims and filing frivolous lawsuits against the city of Englewood.”

The ad also said three businesses “Deitering helped create” had liens against them for unpaid taxes and workers compensation. A second mailing said she failed to pay “$32,000 in taxes and workers compensation payments owed by her businesses.”

Deitering said the ads are misrepresentations.

“I’m not going to be misled or taken astray on a non-issue,” said Deitering, flanked by about 19 supporters, family members and State Rep. Mike Henne, R-Clayton.

Deitering, an attorney, said she handled the incorporation of the three businesses but does not have ownership in them or responsibility for the unpaid taxes.

“They are hitting her on things she has zero control over,” said Rob Scott, chairman of the Montgomery County Republican Party and Deitering’s law partner. “When you are listed as an agent for a company as an attorney a lot of times it’s just that you incorporated them and when somebody wants to sue that company they’ll serve that attorney.”

Deitering initially said there is no court judgment of $17,000, but there was a judgment against her former legal associate, Ann Requarth, who paid it.

Later a Dayton Daily News search of court records showed a 2009 certificate of judgement for $12,500 against Deitering and Requarth for frivolous conduct in a legal dispute with Englewood and City Manager Eric Smith over a Walmart that was being built in Englewood. When asked about that, Deitering said her earlier comments were referring to a judgment of about $2,500 against her and Requarth in a case involving a fired Englewood employee which was paid by Requarth. Deitering said the case involving the Walmart store was appealed, resolved and is subject to a confidentiality agreement.

“What I said to you earlier was there was a judgment, that the $17,000 was wrong, that there was a judgment and Ann paid it,” Deitering said.

Winburn called the information in the mailings “credible” and referred questions to the state Democratic Party.

The party’s source was a 2008 Dayton Daily News article that references two common pleas court sanctions against Deitering and Requarth for frivolous conduct and totaling nearly $17,000, said Keary McCarthy, spokesman for the Ohio Democratic Caucus.

He said public records show the connection between Deitering and three companies: Raincatchers Inc. of Dayton, Lost Star Inc. of Butler Twp. and Coyote Painting Inc. of Vandalia

Phone numbers for Raincatchers and Coyote Painting were disconnected and there was no listing for Lost Star.

“The public records indicate a pretty significant level of involvement,” said McCarthy, citing county recorder, court and Ohio Secretary of State records.

There are more than $42,000 Ohio certificates of judgment dating back to 1999 against the three companies on file at the Montgomery County Clerk of Courts for unpaid state taxes and/or workers compensation. Deitering is listed at the Ohio Secretary of State’s office as the incorporator and agent for Raincatchers and Coyote Painting, and as the agent for Lost Star.

McCarthy said the Democratic Party is helping Winburn more financially than in the past.

“We want to do whatever we can to help him,” said McCarthy. “Republicans redrew this district and stacked the deck to maximize the number of seats they will win statewide.”

The current 40th district - which is reliably Democratic - is made up of parts of Dayton, Huber Heights, Riverside, Trotwood, Harrison Twp. and surrounding communities. The district number is now 43 and is more evently split politically. The new district includes parts of Dayton, Trotwood, Harrison Twp., eastern Montgomery County and all of Preble County.