The California Horse Racing Board filed a complaint against both Peter Miller and Ruben Alvarado on May 23, 2022, alleging that Miller “engaged in behavior consistent with the duties of a trainer at the San Luis Rey Training Center with horses in the barn of trainer Ruben Alvarado.”
A complaint is an alleged violation that has not been adjudicated. A hearing date for Miller has been set for June 20, 2022; Alvarado's hearing has been set for July 18, 2022.
According to the complaint: “In late November 2021, Trainer Peter Miller stepped down as a trainer and transferred most of his barn to Trainer Ruben Alvarado. Between 12/23/2021 and 03/24/2022, Peter Miller has engaged in behavior consistent with the duties of a trainer at the San Luis Rey Training Center with horses in the barn of Trainer Ruben Alvarado. This has included entering horses, conducting endoscopy exams, giving instruction to riders, examining horses, consulting with veterinarians, controlling and accessing bank accounts purported to belong to Ruben Alvarado Racing Stables, assigning jockeys, and creating training charts.”
The complaint against Alvarado alleges that the longtime assistant to Miller “acknowledged that he is aware Miller has been conducting these duties. In addition, Alvarado did not set up his own stable bank account independent of Miller, which was required per the Steward's direction.”
In November, Miller issued a statement via the media saying he would be going on a “temporary hiatus” and turning his stable over to longtime assistant Ruben Alvarado.
(Read Miller's full statement here.)
Five horses from Miller's stable died in 2021, more than any other California trainer, drawing increased scrutiny. He was also sanctioned three times in 2021 for Class 4 medication violations in California, two of them for phenylbutazone overages after timed workouts. Miller denied in a statement that the break was prompted by actions by or agreements with regulators or racetracks.
Miller added that he planned to act as “an advisor/racing manager to my owners and my assistants, as well as staying involved as an owner myself.”
Miller returned to the entry box with a starter at Churchill Downs on May 29, sending out Respect the Code to finish sixth in an allowance contest. He told the Daily Racing Form last week that he will be gearing up for the meets at Del Mar and Los Alamitos in California and later in the year at Santa Anita.
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