Trial delayed for former GOP statehouse candidate charged with extortion

Jocelyn Smith at her press conference on March 27, 2018. Photo by Jim Otte.

Jocelyn Smith at her press conference on March 27, 2018. Photo by Jim Otte.

Former Republican statehouse candidate Jocelyn Smith has changed her lawyer and requested a delay in the felony extortion case against her in Greene County Common Pleas Court.

Smith, 36, of Fairborn, was indicted in June on extortion, a third-degree felony, and coercion, a second-degree misdemeanor.

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Her trial was set to begin next week, but Smith’s new attorney, Dustin Blake, has asked for and received a continuance from Judge Michael Buckwalter, according to court records.

The charges against Smith stem from statements she made about State Rep. Rick Perales, R-Beavercreek, while campaigning in the spring for the GOP nomination for Perales’ seat.

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Smith alleged that Perales had choked, forcibly kissed, fondled and sexted with her in 2015. Perales admitted to inappropriate sexually oriented text messages, but denied there was ever any physical intimacy.

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During a March news conference, Smith said that if Perales did not resign from the state legislature and withdraw from the Republican primary, she would release texts and other documentation she said proved her allegations.

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A new trial date has not been set. A pretrial conference is scheduled in early November.

RELATED: 'Don't force me to release the rest of the text messages,' local candidate tells lawmaker

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