CHRB Denies Stay of Justify Decision, Will Entertain Appeal

In the latest detour in the exhaustive legal saga stemming from Justify's 2018 GI Santa Anita Derby win, the connections of the horse during his racing career filed a notice last week with the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) requesting that the agency entertain an appeal of a recent board of stewards decision disqualifying the horse from the race and to stay the purse distribution.

In response, the CHRB have denied a stay of the stewards' decision but stated that it will “assign a Hearing Officer in this matter where the issue of timeliness of the appeal and appeal itself will be heard and a proposed decision submitted to the Board for consideration,” according to an order issued by the CHRB Tuesday.

The plaintiffs in the appeal are owners China Horse Club International Limited, Head of Plains Partners, Starlight Racing, WinStar Farm, jockey Mike Smith and trainer Bob Baffert.

After the New York Times first reported that Justify had tested positive post-race for scopolamine, Mick Ruis, owner-trainer of the runner-up that day, Bolt d'Oro, sought to have the result of the race overturned with Bolt d'Oro declared the winner.

Ruis alleged that the CHRB failed to follow its own rules when it decided not to pursue penalties after Justify's positive test. The CHRB argued that Justify should not be disqualified because the positive test was the result of contamination linked to jimson weed.

At the end of last year, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge ordered the CHRB to set aside the stewards' 2020 decision and issue a new ruling disqualifying winner Justify from the Santa Anita Derby.

Early in March, the CHRB reached a separate settlement that called for the agency to pay Ruis $300,000, and to order a redistribution of the $1-million purse.

In last week's notice, Amanda Groves, who represents Justify's connections, argued that grounds for an appeal included how the plaintiffs were not a party to the lawsuit between Ruis and the CHRB, leading to “Procedural irregularities and denial of due process and/or a fair and impartial hearing.”

Groves also reiterated the CHRB's original claim, writing that “it is undisputed that the positive scopolamine test was a result of environmental contamination due to inadvertent exposure to jimsonweed in hay/straw.”

BloodHorse reported that Ruis's attorneys had filed a response arguing that none of the grounds raised in the appeal are relevant.

When asked about the contents of the letter, Darrell Vienna, who represents Ruis, told the TDN that the CHRB issued the disqualification order “because they were ordered to do so by the court.”

The court did not demand that the CHRB hold another hearing on the matter, Vienna added. “It just issued an order to disqualify the horse, Justify, and to redistribute the purse,” he said.

“If the Justify parties have issue with that, that issue should be addressed at the Superior Court, in my opinion,” said Vienna. “If the court orders a subordinate agency to do something, they must do it.”

According to last week's notice of appeal, Justify's first-place finish in the Santa Anita Derby accrued the owners a combined $585,000, while Smith and Baffert each received $58,450.

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Victor Escobar Succeeds Brook Hawkins as NYRA Steward

Racing official Victor Escobar has been appointed New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) Steward, NYRA announced late Thursday afternoon. The former Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission (OHRC) State Steward, where he'd been since 2021 and where he had played a central role in the implementation of Category 1 rules at Remington Park, Escobar will join NYRA Feb. 16. As OHRC Steward, Escobar was also responsible for public communication with the betting public immediately following stewards' decisions. He has also served as State Steward for the New Mexico Racing Commission and as an Association Steward at Rillito Park.

In 2023, Escobar was selected by the Racing Officials Accreditation Program (ROAP) as the first American steward to participate in the International Stewards Education Program, a three-week immersion in the United Kingdom designed to facilitate international harmonization amongst stewards and judges.

The NYRA Board of Stewards is comprised of three officials who collectively officiate races and adjudicate disputes at all NYRA tracks. The Board includes the New York State Gaming Commission Steward, The Jockey Club Steward and the NYRA Steward.

Escobar, the son of retired jockey Victor Escobar Sr., succeeds Brook Hawkins, who has been the primary NYRA Steward since 2019.

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Slight Changes to Sovereign Award Guidelines

The Jockey Club of Canada, which recognizes outstanding achievements in Canadian Thoroughbred racing and breeding with the annual Sovereign Awards, is implementing changes to the guidelines for some of the awards, effective for the current year.

Directly from the The Jockey Club's Board of Stewards are the following changes:

1). The trophy recipient for the divisional horse awards shall be the owner of the horse as of its last start in the award year and, if the owner is not also the breeder, the breeder listed on the Jockey Club Certificate of Registration may receive a trophy as well.

2). The owner of the Outstanding Broodmare at the end of the award year shall be the only recipient of that award and trophy.

An Outstanding Groom award–not a sanctioned Sovereign Award–is also presented with the awards. Again, from the Board of Stewards:

3). Nominators must hold a valid Thoroughbred license in the province of Ontario.

Nominators were previously restricted to licensed trainers and assistant trainers. The nomination period for the Outstanding Groom award is now open through Dec. 11.

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Banke, Lear, Rankin Elected to TJC Board of Stewards

Barbara Banke, William M. Lear, Jr., and R. Alex Rankin have been elected to the The Jockey Club (TJC) board of stewards. Lear has been reelected, while Banke and Rankin are filling the expired positions of Everett R. Dobson and John W. Phillips. The board of stewards also consists of chairman Stuart S. Janney III, as well as Dr. Larry Bramlage, C. Steven Duncker, William S. Farish, Jr., Ian D. Highet, and Vinnie Viola.

Reelected Lear has served as TJC's vice chairman since 2015 and has been a member of TJC since 2010. He is the chairman emeritus of Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC and currently serves on the board of Keeneland and Commonwealth Seed Capital LLC.

Banke previously served on the board of stewards from 2016-2020 and has been a member of TJC since 2013. Proprietor of Jackson Family Wines, she also owns Stonestreet Stables and is an owner and breeder. Banke serves on the board of the Breeders' Cup, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, and Keeneland. She is also on the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association American Graded Stakes Committee.

Rankin has been a member of TJC since 2016 and has been the chairman of Churchill Downs Inc. since 2018. He is the chairman of the board of Sterling G. Thompson Company in Louisville and founder of Upson Downs Farm. He has also served as president and board member of the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, president and director of the Kentucky Derby Museum, director of Breeders' Cup Limited, and director of Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders.

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