Bus driver allegedly sexually assaulted woman with Down syndrome

DALLAS, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Lawyers for a Dallas woman with Down syndrome filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against a bus driver, accusing him of raping the woman twice.

The suit, filed by T. Nguyen, an attorney for the woman whose name wasn't reported, named Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Bus Service, MV Transportation and paratransit driver Cedrick Agent as defendants.

It said Agent allegedly raped the woman twice in one week in September 2013 after other passengers had disembarked from the bus. The woman, who is in her 30s, has the mental capacity of a 6-year-old, Nguyen said.

The suit also accuses DART of being uncooperative by not revealing Agent's name and refusing to return two pairs of ripped underwear belonging to the alleged victim. The woman's mother gave the underwear to DART police as evidence of the alleged rape.

"The DART police refused to discuss its investigation and referred me to DART's legal department," Nguyen said. "There is something seriously wrong when a company at the center of an alleged rape controls the police. We will discover the truth and hold the wrongdoers accountable."

Agent told the Dallas Observer "nothing ever happened."

"We have a no-touch policy. We don't touch anybody on that bus unless they're in wheelchairs, to lock them down," he said. "I've been following [the policy] for four years. You look at my file I've got nothing but compliments."

After the complaint against Agent, DART police took a DNA sample from the driver and he was allowed to return to work.