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Judge Vacates Order To Sell Ramsey Horses At Keeneland; Owner Places Over $1 Million In Escrow For Ward Suit

A judge in Jessamine County Circuit Court has reversed his order to send 14 horses owned by Ken and Sarah Ramsey to the Keeneland January sale, reports bloodhorse.com, as part of an ongoing lawsuit by the couple's longtime trainer, Wesley Ward. Instead, the judge has allowed Ramsey to place $1,014,614.96 into escrow as security.

Ward brought suit against the Ramseys for unpaid bills in March of this year, claiming he was owed $974,790.40, which included training bills, purses, and interest. Around the same time, trainer Mike Maker also sued the couple for $905,357.29 in unpaid bills. Maker settled his case in September, with the terms of settlement undisclosed.

Ward had filed a motion in early December week seeking to be allowed to sell the horses, pointing out that he had filed agister's liens on them and obtained a warrant enforcing those liens. In March, Ward secured liens against a total of 44 Ramsey horses who contributed to the outstanding bills. According to court documents, Ward has sold a number of the horses who racked up the bills at public auction or via claiming and the 14 that remain are the only ones Ward still has in his barn.

Ramsey's attorney filed an emergency motion one day after the 14 were supplemented to the Keeneland January sale, requesting the judge vacate his order for sale, on the basis that the sale would cause “permanent and irreparable damage to Defendants that will not be made whole by mere money.”

“Following entry of the Court's order of sale, the supplement to the Keeneland January 2021 Horses of All Ages Sale has been released. It does not include the horses which are the subject of the Court's order of sale, which means the horses, their pedigrees, and past performances will not appear either in the catalog or the supplement for the sale,” the emergency order stated. “As a result, permitting the horses to be sold under such circumstances will cause substantial damages to Defendants.”

Ramsey's attorney Mike Meuser told bloodhorse.com that all 14 horses will be sent to another trainer in Florida.

Feds, Fishman Spar in Bail Revocation Hearing

Federal prosecutors and the legal team for Seth Fishman continue to spar over allegations by the government that the indicted Florida veterinarian should have his bail revoked for allegedly still selling purportedly performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) while awaiting trial in the international racehorse doping conspiracy case.

The latest legal salvo, fired Dec. 17 by prosecutors in the form of a letter, comes three days before Fishman's Dec. 20 bail revocation hearing in United States District Court (Southern District of New York).

This latest plot twist in the case began Dec. 6, when prosecutors told the judge that Fishman's administrative assistant permitted Federal Bureau of Investigation agents to search her workplace, and the search allegedly yielded evidence that Fishman is still selling drugs.

One week later, Fishman replied with a court filing of his own that stated that employee “had little choice but to succumb to the demand by agents that they be permitted to search the premises” because at the time her consent to the search was obtained “she was at risk of prosecution for the very offenses with which Dr. Fishman was charged.”

Friday's new filing made three points:

“First, Fishman attempts to justify his continued manufacture of drugs by claiming a 'good faith' effort to meet the requirements of the 'export exemption' set forth in 21 U.S.C. § 381(e),” the Dec. 17 filing stated.

“Second, the defendant suggests that the Government has implicitly condoned his ongoing criminal activity insofar as Fishman and/or his former counsel have claimed that Fishman holds an intention to continue his drug sales in conformity with the foreign sales exemption of 21 U.S.C. § 381(e),” the filing stated.

“Finally, the Government notes that Fishman points to no authority for the proposition that a proffering witness cannot provide voluntary consent to a search,” the filing stated.

Fishman is charged with two felony counts related to drug alteration, misbranding, and conspiring to defraud the government. His trial is tentatively expected to start in mid-January.

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Ramsey Files Counterclaim: Wants 30 Horses In Ward’s Care To Stop Incurring Expenses

Owner Ken Ramsey fired back at trainer Wesley Ward in court on Thursday, reports bloodhorse.com, filing a response to the trainer's Aug. 3 motion for summary judgement alleging payments from the Ramseys have stopped.

Trainer Mike Maker also filed a similar motion in Kentucky civil court against the Ramseys in July. The Ramseys were sued earlier this year by both trainers for allegedly failing to pay board and training bills. Ken Ramsey told media and the trainers at the time the lawsuits became public that he intended to catch up on the nearly $2 million he owed Ward and Maker.

Ward's motion for summary judgement, filed in Jessamine Circuit Court on Aug. 3, states that the couple agreed to make minimum monthly payments of $100,000 until the total overdue balance of $974,790.40 was satisfied. Ward alleges he received his May payment of $100,000 as well as miscellaneous amounts from purses and claims, but after that the payments stopped. He also alleges that the couple did not pay all the amounts owed to him from purses and claims.

Ramsey's response claims that there is no written agreement between the owner and Ward which specifies a day rate, whether that rate applies to specific horses or a number of horses, and the timing of payments.

The response also indicates that Ramsey asked Ward to return 30 of his horses on July 5, and that Ward filed for an agister's lien to retain ownership of the horses until the alleged debt is paid. Ramsey has reportedly been unable to race those horses, and the response points out that under Kentucky law, plaintiffs “cannot stand idly by” to allow further damages to be incurred when they could be “easily prevented by the use of reasonable efforts, expense, and diligence to prevent, or arrest, the loss.”

New Mexico Horsemen File Suit Against Commission Over ‘Retaliatory’ Defunding Attempt

The New Mexico Horsemen's Association (NMHA) filed an immediate Appeal and Motion to Stay with the Second Judicial District Court in Bernalillo County on May 23 over action taken by the New Mexico Racing Commission (NMRC) at its meeting on May 20, 2021.

On that date, the NMRC unanimously passed a motion that the NMHA “is to immediately discontinue the practice of requiring its membership to pay the 1% purse diversion, the $5.00 Starter Fee and the $2.00 PAC [Political Action Committee] fee stemming from their participation in horseracing in New Mexico. The motion also is to instruct all five (5) racetracks to not provide those improper funds to the New Mexico Horsemen's Association.”

According to a letter written by NMRC in-house counsel Richard Bustamante, “stopping that improper diversion of purse money will translate to the addition of approximately $700,000.00 a year to purse money.”

The Commission's order cannot stand for several reasons, the court filing by the Horsemen alleges. They contend horsemen were not afforded Due Process, the commission has no authority or jurisdiction over donation by horsemen owners to the horsemen, and the order was made in retaliation.

According to the Appeal and Motion to Stay filed by the NMHA: “The true motive behind the order/directive is to deprive the Horsemen of all or a large portion of funding because the Horsemen objected to racetracks using 'purse monies' for operational expenses [insurance], Horsemen objected to the Commission canceling race meets and/or shortening race meets, Horsemen refused to pay from purse money the operational expenses of the racetracks, and Horsemen were demanding racetracks keep the tracks and backsides in good, clean and safe condition.”

In addition, the NMHA plans to amend its current civil lawsuit against the NMRC to include additional causes of action for both discrimination against the NMHA and for ethics violation of public officials based on alleged conflict of interests of commissioners.

On Dec. 2, 2020, the NMHA filed a lawsuit against the Commission seeking the return of more than $8 million it alleges the Commission has been collecting improperly from horsemen since 2004 to pay liability insurance for jockeys.

That complaint, a petition for declaratory judgement and relief, also alleges that the commission has improperly ordered horsemen to pay a “gate fee or starter's fee” every time a horse races.

“The costs of operating the 'gate' are and always have been an expense of the association putting on the race, that is a cost or expense of the racino and not the owner or trainer of the horse entering the gate for a scheduled race,” the complaint states, adding that “there is no provision in New Mexico law that allows the Racing Commission to access a fee to horsemen for the starter's gate.”

Finally, the Dec. 2 complaint alleges that the New Mexico Racing Commission improperly demands the Horsemen's Association pay a fee for a license. “The Horsemen's Association does not race horses, or train horses and is a benevolent, non-profit organization and no license is required,” the complaint alleges.

The commission subsequently filed a Motion to Dismiss for lack of jurisdiction and failure to state a claim, to which the horsemen responded on May 3, 2021.

A portion of that response reads: “In a stunning admission, the New Mexico Racing Commission admits they have taken the Horsemen's purse money, and now suggest the Horsemen have no remedy, not even in the Courts of New Mexico. The Commission suggests the Horsemen can come to them and seek relief, which is akin to asking the fox to return the chicken.”

The response concludes: “Horse racing in New Mexico was saved when each racetrack was allowed to institute casino gaming. The plan, as set forth by statute, was that certain proceeds from casino gaming would go to purses for horse racing. Casino gaming was meant to save horse racing, not the other way around. The New Mexico legislature clearly wrote the money was to be used for purses. Purses are not defined as operating costs of the racetrack/casinos. The rule-regulation of the Commission is not in compliance with the statutes. There is no administrative remedy for the Horsemen and they have attempted, to no avail, to get the Commission to stop allowing racetracks/casinos to use part of the purse money for operating costs. The Horsemen are correct about what the money can be used for, that is, for purses. The Horsemen request the law be complied with and the Court determine not only that it has the jurisdiction but the Horsemen have no remedy but through the Courts.”

The post New Mexico Horsemen File Suit Against Commission Over ‘Retaliatory’ Defunding Attempt appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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