June, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Rice Plans Court Appeal to Keep Training

The previously levied three-year license revocation and $50,000 fine against trainer Linda Rice went into effect Monday, the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) announced. According to published reports, Rice will request a temporary restraining order to try and get the revocation stayed pending a court review of the NYSGC's ruling.

On May 17, Rice had her training license revoked for a period of “no less than three years” and got fined $50,000 when NYSGC members voted 5-0 to agree with a hearing officer that Rice's years-long pattern of seeking and obtaining confidential pre-entry information from New York Racing Association (NYRA) racing office workers was “intentional, serious and extensive, and that her actions constituted improper and corrupt conduct…inconsistent with and detrimental to the best interests of horse racing.”

Rice had testified during eight days of NYSGC hearings late in 2020 that she had handed over cash gifts amounting to thousands of dollars at a time to NYRA racing office employees between 2011 and 2015.

But the veteran conditioner, who has been training since 1987 and owns seven NYRA training titles, also testified that she did not expect any special favors in return for that money, and that any entry-related information she did receive from NYRA employees was a type of disclosure that was routinely divulged to other trainers.

Rice's lone trainee entered to race June 7 was scratched at Finger Lakes.

Ironically–considering the circumstances of Rice's case–that entrant was named Inside Info (Mission Impazible).

Rice's attorney, Andrew Turro, did not respond to TDN queries prior to deadline for this story. But he told The Blood-Horse that a stay will likely be filed in Schenectady Supreme Court and that she will fight the case until all of her legal avenues of appeal have been exhausted.

“We are very troubled by the commission's determination with respect to the racing office information issue because it is incorrect in a number of material respects,” Turro told The Blood-Horse. “We will seek judicial review of the order as soon as humanly possible and we expect to be heard in court this week on a stay application.”

Rice has six horses total entered to race at both Belmont Park and Finger Lakes later this week.

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Rice License Revocation Goes Into Effect June 7

Top New York trainer Linda Rice saw her license revoked officially by the state's gaming commission June 7, two weeks after a hearing officer's recommendations in her long-running case were made public. Rice was accused of receiving information from the racing office about which horses were entered in which races prior to the official close of entries. The alleged information exchange took place over a period of 2011 and 2014, and the commission first brought a complaint against Rice in 2019. A series of hearing dates took place in late 2020, during which the commission and Rice's attorney presented information to a hearing officer along with numerous volumes of data and interview transcripts.

At a regularly scheduled meeting two weeks ago, the gaming commission voted to uphold that hearing officer's recommendation that Rice's license be revoked with the condition she could not reapply for licensure for at least three years. She has also been ordered to pay a fine of $50,000 and is denied all access to New York gaming commission-sanctioned properties.

Rice's lone entry on June 7, Inside Info in the eighth race at Finger Lakes, was a stewards' scratch.

The commission had alleged that Rice “received regular, continual and improper access to confidential names and other information,” and that she “paid substantial sums of money to NYRA racing officials” to get this information. The hearing officer agreed that Rice improperly solicited and received non-public information but dismissed the charge relating to the trainer allegedly paying substantial sums of money in exchange for the information.

“We are gratified that the commission dismissed the bribery charges against Ms. Rice as they had no merit whatsoever,” said Rice's attorney, Andrew Turro. “Nonetheless, we are troubled by the Commission's determination with respect to the racing information issue because it is incorrect in a number of material respects. We will seek judicial review of the order as soon as possible and expect to be heard in court this week on a stay application.”

Licensees in New York are entitled to appeal a finding of a hearing officer to the appropriate court, and it's common for stays of suspensions or other penalties to be issued while the appeals process plays out.

The post Rice License Revocation Goes Into Effect June 7 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Lepic, Leech Inducted into Prairie Meadows Hall of Fame

Tom Lepic and Deb Leech, two long-time leaders in Iowa's horse racing industry, will be inducted into the Prairie Meadows Hall of Fame at a ceremony at the track July 2. Lepic has been involved in the racing industry for nearly 50 years and is currently President of the Iowa Quarter Horse Racing Association. Leech served as a board member for the Iowa Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners Association from 2009 to 2016 and was president of the association from 2011 to 2016.

Also being inducted into the track's hall of fame this year is Iowa's all-time leading distaff earner Mywomanfromtokyo (Neko Bay). Racing for Scott Pope's Crimson King Farm and Christine Rhiner and trained by Kelly Von Hemel, the 8-year-old mare has won four stakes and earned $595,276.

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Havre De Grace Daughter Graceful Princess Entered In Wednesday’s Delaware ‘Cap Prep

Whisper Hill Farm's Graceful Princess is among fourteen entered in the $100,000 Obeah Stakes at Delaware Park this Wednesday, June 9. The mile and a sixteenth affair is the local prep for the filly and mare summer classic – the mile-and-a-quarter Grade 2 Delaware Handicap to be run on Saturday, July 10.

Graceful Princess is a daughter of the 2011 Horse of the Year Havre de Grace. Havre de Grace, who broke her maiden at Delaware Park in 2009, won the Obeah Stakes before finishing second beaten a nose against her arch rival Blind Luck in the Delaware Handicap in 2011. Tapit, the sire of Graceful Princess, broke his maiden at Delaware Park in 2003 before winning the 2004 Wood Memorial.

In her only outing this year, Graceful Princess finished third beaten a neck in the mile and a sixteenth Grade 3 Doubledogdare Stakes at Keeneland in April 16.

“She has trained very well since the Doubledogdare,” said her trainer Todd Pletcher. “That was a huge effort and we are optimistic coming in.”

Last year, the 5-year-old Kentucky-bred had a record of a win from four starts. Her career record is two wins, a second and a third from 11 starts with earnings of $108,474.

Todd Pletcher has won the Obeah Stakes five times – Isola Piu Bella in 2005, Fleet Indian in 2006, Unbridled Belle in 2008 & 2009, and Love and Pride in 2012. Pletcher has used the Obeah Stakes as a prep for three of his four record equaling Delaware Handicap victories. In 2001, Irving's Baby ran third in the Obeah Stakes before winning the Delaware Handicap; in 2006, Fleet Indian won the Obeah Stakes before winning the DelCap; and in 2007, Unbridled Belle ran second in the Obeah Stakes before her Delaware Handicap score. In 2010, Life at Ten did not run in the Obeah Stakes before winning the Delaware Handicap.

The race is named in honor of the two-time Delaware Handicap winner in 1969 and 1970 and the dam of the Hall of Fame filly Go For Wand who was locally owned by Jane and Harry duPont's Christiana Stable. Horses finishing first, second, third or fourth in the Obeah Stakes will automatically earn a free nomination to the Delaware Handicap.

Since the Obeah Stakes was inaugurated in 1996, only the 2006 older female champion Fleet Indian and I'm a Chatterbox, who won the race in 2016, have won the race and followed with a victory in the Delaware Handicap. Two fillies have finished second in the Obeah and won the Delaware Handicap. They were Unbridled Belle in 2007 and Power Play in 1997. Three winners of the Obeah Stakes have followed by running second in the Delaware Handicap. They were 2011 Horse of the year Havre de Grace, Your Out in 2002 and Under the Rug in 2001.

$100,000 Obeah Stakes

PP	HORSE	OWNER	TRAINER	JOCKEY	Wg	OD
1	Shyza	Carguys Racing	John Servis	Mychel Sanchez	119	20-1
2	Crystall Ball	WinStar Stablemates	Rodolphe Brisset	Luis Saez	121	5-1
3	Bajan Girl	R. Stack & D. Walters	Rohan Crichton	Kendrick Carmouche	119	6-1
4	Promised Storm	Jennifer Truehart	Regina Brennan	Luis Ocasio	119	20-1
5	Jilted Bride	Bradley Thoroughbreds	Steven Asmussen	Jaime Rodriguez	123	12-1
6	Trolley Ride	James Eshleman	T. Bernard Houghton	Inoel Beato	119	20-1
7	Sweet Sami D	ABL Stable	Patrick McBurney	Paco Lopez	119	20-1
8	Miss Marissa	Cammarota Racing	James Ryerson	Daniel Centeno	119	8-1
9	Queen Nekia	Ken Copenhaver	Joseph Saffie Jr	J.C. Diaz Jr	123	7/2
10	Dream Marie	Miracle's International	Matthew Williams	Joe Bravo	119	15-1
11	Market Rumor	Bloch & Six Column	Ian Wilkes	Chris Landeros	119	20-1
12	Graceful Princess	Whisper Hill Farm	Todd Pletcher	Irad Ortiz Jr	119	9/2
13	Lucky Stride	Sonata Stable	Michael Trombetta	Julian Pimentel	123	15-1
14	Artfull Splatter	James Wolf	Kieron Magee	Carol Cedeno	119	15-1

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