A New Jersey man who says he was abused by a Boy Scouts troop leader in the 1980s is suing to force the organization to release long-secret files containing the names of volunteers who were banned or considered risks for child sexual abuse.

Attorneys for retired police officer Richard Halvorson filed the suit late Monday.

The troop leader was suspended in 1987. The attorneys said he also worked as a schoolteacher and may have worked for another youth scouting organization.

The Boy Scouts have kept the files for decades. About 5,000 have been made public as a result of court action, but others remain confidential.

A Boy Scouts of America spokesman said in an email Tuesday that the organization supports the creation of a national registry of suspected abusers.