Article: SMITH SAYS HE IS VICTIM BUT ACCUSER STANDS BY CLAIM OF RAPE.(News)

Jeff Smith, better known as the Frugal Gourmet, claims in court records that he is the victim of an attempted shakedown for money and is innocent of claims that he sexually assaulted teenage boys.

But as Smith's attorneys proclaimed his innocence, lawyers for the man allegedly raped by Smith 21 years ago said yesterday their phones were flooded with callers offering new information.

``Our phones have been ringing off the hook,'' said Richard Kelley of Tacoma, an attorney for George Heitman, the man who claims Smith used alcohol, threats and physical force to have sex with him when he was 15 years old.

Mike Shaffer, Heitman's other attorney, said ...

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