Mo. education board leader denies sex allegations

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The president-elect of the Missouri State Board of Education is denying allegations that he had an inappropriate sexual relationship years ago with a former member of his Kansas City church.

In the lawsuit, a woman alleges the Rev. Stan Archie, senior pastor at Christian Fellowship Baptist Church, began a sexual relationship with her while he was counseling her. The lawsuit names the church, saying officials failed to protect her and hid reports of impropriety by Archie.

Archie's attorney, Michael McCausland, said Archie and the church deny the allegations. He calls the lawsuit "an obvious attempt to extort money."

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Friday that a spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education said Archie told Commissioner Chris Nicastro and others about the lawsuit.

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Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com