A woman has sued a former youth minister at a church in Spring Lake Park, alleging that he repeatedly sexually assaulted her in the 1970s when she was a teenager and a member of the church's youth group.

The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, claims that Douglas Wayne King assaulted the woman from 1975 to 1977, when she was 15, 16 and 17. King was about 20 at the time and married, the suit states.

Also being sued is Eagle Brook Church of White Bear Lake, described in the lawsuit as the successor of the Spring Lake Park church.

Asked if he was aware of the case or lawsuit, Scott Anderson, executive pastor at Eagle Brook, declined to comment. He said that Spring Lake Baptist Church "gave their buildings and assets to us and became Eagle Brook" in 2007.

The suit states that King now lives in Virginia, and the alleged victim in Maryland. It was filed by attorneys Michael Bryant of Waite Park, Minn., and Jeffrey Herman of Boca Raton, Fla., neither of whom returned phone calls Wednesday.

King could not be reached for comment.

Randy Furst