Harris Co. couple files lawsuit after wife suffers injuries on bus ride

HOUSTON - A Harris County couple recently initiated legal action against All Aboard America! Holdings Inc. and Industrial Bus Lines Inc. following an alleged incident in Phoenix which left the wife with injuries to her back and spine.

Cindy and Frank Demeris originally filed a lawsuit against the companies in Harris County District Court on March 7.

They amended their court papers on June 25, and the litigation was removed to the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas on July 22.

The suit shows that the plaintiffs were attending a conference at the time of the events in question on July 2, 2012.

Cindy Demeris was riding a bus owned and operated by the defendants from her hotel to an evening event in suburban Phoenix when the vehicle "hit a dip in the road with such force and speed that Ms. Demeris was thrown up in the air to such an extent that her head violently hit the furthermost part of the ceiling of the bus," according to the suit.

It further states that Cindy Demeris tried to stay throughout the event, but was "ultimately forced to leave early as a result of the pain and discomfort," adding she was prompted to seek medical attention "when the pain and limitations were too much to bear" two days later.

She and her husband returned to Houston on July 5, 2012, after which it was determined that she required surgeries on her back and spine.

The suit says that Cindy Demeris was unable to return to work until Oct. 15, 2012, "at which time she began to work, albeit at nowhere near the level and ability that she had before."

Consequently, the complainants seek unspecified monetary damages.

They are represented by attorney Gus E. Pappas of Dabney & Pappas in Houston.

Case No. 4:13-CV-2144