Stephen Lewandowski | Horse Racing Free Tips

Report: Investigation Reveals Former NYRA Steward Engaged In ‘Favoritism,’ Failed To Keep Records Of His Actions

A steward for the New York Racing Association from 2014 through 2019, and employed by the New York State Gaming Commission in other roles since 1986, Stephen Lewandowski has been revealed as the subject of a state investigation that indicated he engaged in “favoritism” and “inconsistent application of policies,” reports the Albany Times-Union. The report, by a New York inspector general, was released as part of a pledge of Gov. Kathy Hochul's administration to be more transparent.

The inspector general's investigation, conducted in 2018, stemmed from a complaint filed by an unnamed owner who claimed Lewandowski had been withholding the purse money his horse had won. Then–acting Gaming Commission Inspector General Lisa Lee discovered the owner and his trainer had been in a dispute about training/veterinary fees, and that Lewandowski had withheld the purse money for more than a year without either notifying other Gaming Commission officials or filing a suspension of the owner.

Lewandowski's colleagues also told investigators that he was “arrogant, condescending, intimidating and disrespectful” and acted like “God at the track.”

The investigative report concluded: “Lewandowski's fitness to represent the commission as a steward should be reconsidered given his actions against licensees who have not been suspended or revoked, his lack of understanding as to his role vis-a-vis the Division of Horse Racing and Pari-Mutuel Wagering and the commission as a whole, as well as his lack of record-keeping related to actions taken.”

However, Lewandowski kept his job for seven months after the date of the report, at which point he retired voluntarily. Contacted by the Times-Union, Lewandowski said he was completely unaware of the inspector general's findings.

Recently, Lewandowski has been in the news for his ardent support of embattled Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert during a suspension hearing called by the New York Racing Association.

Under questioning from Baffert's attorneys, Lewandowski said he had no dealings with Baffert on any integrity or rule violation issues in his time serving as a steward in the state. Lewandowski said he called Baffert sometime after he was suspended by NYRA to offer his support.

“I feel like he's been unfairly taken advantage of,” Lewandowski said. “He's never had any problems in New York.”

On cross examination, NYRA attorney Henry Greenberg questioned that point by Lewandowski, bringing up the controversy about Baffert's non-coupled entry in the 2018 Belmont Stakes. Baffert saddled both Triple Crown winner Justify in that race as well as Restoring Hope, who was piloted by Florent Geroux. Mike Repole, co-owner of Vino Rosso and Noble Indy, would later complain to New York Post writer Tom Pedulla that Geroux put in a “reckless” ride aboard Restoring Hope, possibly in an attempt to block some of Justify's competitors.

Headlines in the Post questioned officials' decision not to launch an investigation into the race. Lewandowski said that he eventually spoke to Repole but also that he did not recall Repole's complaint. He said he did not speak to Baffert about the incident, and said he did not recall subsequent media coverage questioning the stewards' lack of investigation. He also said he did not recall eventually reversing course and speaking to Geroux, nor did he recall a meeting with the other stewards, who Greenberg suggested disagreed with each other on the best way to handle the situation.

Then, Greenberg asked Lewandowski about his support of Rick Dutrow, who was suspended 10 years and fined $50,000 after one of his horses tested positive for butorphanol and three hypodermic needles were discovered in a desk drawer in Dutrow's office. Following his retirement in 2019, Lewandowski wrote a letter to the Gaming Commission and to the Queens County District Attorney saying that Braulio Baeza Jr., then a NYRA steward, told him the syringes were planted.

Baeza later denied he told Lewandowski this. Baeza is the new state steward who holds Lewandowski's former job.

As to the dispute in stories between himself and Baeza, Lewandowski let loose.

“Braulio Baeza, one of us is lying. It's either Braulio Baeza or me. Are you accusing me of lying?” yelled Lewandowski during Baffert's hearing. “One of us is lying. Why would Braulio Baeza speak to me about Rick Dutrow, who he had nothing to do with. One of us is lying. And I'm not accusing anybody. But it's either him or me. And believe me, he said it to more than one person.

“…Are you calling me a liar, sir? Are you calling me a liar? I am not a liar … I thought Braulio Baeza was a good man. One of us had the information to help a man who was wiped out.

Credibility Challenged, Former NY Steward Erupts at Baffert Hearing

Under pressure of cross-examination that questioned his credibility, a retired New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) steward launched into a nearly five-minute tirade just before the close of Wednesday's hearing to determine whether the New York Racing Association (NYRA) can exclude trainer Bob Baffert over alleged “detrimental conduct.”

Voice cracking with emotion and punctuating points by banging his fist on the witness table, Stephen Lewandowski, who served as the state steward at NYRA tracks between 2014 and 2019, lost his cool after testifying in support of Baffert and then facing terse questioning from a NYRA lawyer who wanted to establish that Lewandowski was being selectively forgetful about his previous dealings with a Baffert controversy.

NYRA's lead attorney also wanted to get it on the record that the former steward had once been put on notice by a state ethics board for allegedly improper post-retirement advocacy on behalf of the controversial banned trainer Richard “Rick” E. Dutrow, Jr., back in 2019.

Lewandowski's outburst, after some 7 1/2 hours of lower-key testimony from seven witnesses, overshadowed remote video appearances by Hall-of-Fame jockeys Mike Smith and John Velazquez, both of whom expressed unwavering support of Baffert.

The eruption also trumped an attempt by Baffert's defense team to get the hearing called off over procedural provisions related to whether NYRA was exceeding its authority as an administrative agency (the hearing proceeded; Baffert's lawyers were bluntly told by hearing officer O. Peter Sherwood to file a post-case brief that he would take under consideration).

For the third straight day, Baffert did not take the witness stand during the Jan. 26 hearing, which despite being conducted in a conference room within the Manhattan offices of NYRA's attorneys, had all the elements of a court trial.

In the morning, Baffert could be seen via the Zoom feed wearing a blue sport coat, blue dress shirt and jeans, tapping his feet in a fidgety way while sipping from a white coffee mug. But by the end of the day any signs of nervous energy had dissipated when Baffert was shown at the respondent's table alongside his attorneys right before adjournment of another long day of testimony.

NYRA is charging that Baffert's alleged conduct is or has been “detrimental” to three entities: 1) The best interests of racing; 2) The health and safety of horses and jockeys; 3) NYRA's business operations.

NYRA had tried to rule off Baffert back on May 17, 2021, without any sort of due process. But he filed a federal lawsuit that got that ban overturned, and now must go through a newly invented NYRA exclusionary hearing process, at which Medina Spirit's still-not-adjudicated GI Kentucky Derby drug positive and four other recent equine drug infractions are the focal points.

Lewandowski, called as a witness by Clark Brewster, one of Baffert's attorneys, testified that he had never met the Hall of Fame trainer in person until Tuesday. The former steward said he had reached out to Baffert by phone “when this whole [NYRA banishment] process started up, and I offered my support… because I feel he's being unfairly taken advantage of.”

During his time as a steward at NYRA tracks (which included fill-in stints as far back as 2000), Lewandowski said that Baffert “never, never, never, never had any problems in New York. Never. The only thing I could ever possibly remember is that maybe his owners needed a license,” which he described as a minor difficulty he helped to correct.

But when NYRA attorney Hank Greenberg took over for cross-examination, he tried to jog Lewandowski's memory by asking him no fewer than five different ways if he was sure that Baffert had never been involved with a controversial issue that the stewards had to deal with.

“Not in connection with Bob Baffert, no,” Lewandowski affirmed.

Greenberg then asked him to specifically recall the 2018 GI Belmont S. That race, of course, was memorable for the Baffert-trained Justify winning the Triple Crown.

But it was also notable for assertions that Restoring Hope, an uncoupled stablemate of Justify, was sent for speed while taken very wide into the first turn before abruptly cutting down to secure a position to the outside of Justify's flank. It appeared to some observers that Restoring Hope was acting as a “wing man” or “blocker” to escort the on-the-lead Justify to victory.

In addition, rival owner Mike Repole subsequently implored the stewards to investigate possible jockeys' collusion based on the rider of his own horse, Noble Indy, not following instructions to vie for the lead. Repole had also said at the time that Restoring Hope was ridden more like “an offensive lineman than a racehorse trying to win the Belmont.”

Brewster could see where this was going, and protested “This is nonsense!” several times before the hearing officer allowed the race replay to be shown.

Yet Lewandowski continued to maintain that he didn't recall any controversy, couldn't remember any owners complaining, couldn't recollect discussing the situation with the two other stewards, didn't remember later interviewing an involved jockey, and drew a blank about ever speaking to the press about the controversy involving Baffert's horse.

Greenberg then presented him with news clippings about the non-investigation, and asked the now-flustered Lewandowski to read his own quotes about it to refresh his memory.

Yet Greenberg did not dwell on that one point. He quickly pivoted to bring up Lewandowski's support of Dutrow, who in 2011 was suspended 10 years and fined $50,000 by the NYSGC's predecessor agency after one of his Aqueduct winners tested positive for an opioid analgesic and syringes containing a painkiller and a sedative were found in Dutrow's stable office.

Lewandowski had retired in June 2019. Five months later, he wrote a letter to the NYSGC and the Queens District Attorney stating that Dutrow's penalties were too tough and alleging that, “Mr. Braulio Baeza Jr., the NYRA Steward at the time… told me on numerous occasions that evidence against Mr. Dutrow was planted…”

That letter found its way into published news reports. Baeza denied he ever said such a thing. The NYSGC issued a press release to denounce Lewandowski's assertions.

And, according Greenberg, the New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) sent Lewandowski a letter putting him on notice that former state employees were not supposed to appear before their former agencies to advocate on behalf of anyone or anything for a two-year period after they left their jobs.

Lewandowski replied to Greenberg by stating that he had “no knowledge” of any JCOPE investigation into that. “No one informed me–sort of what NYRA did with Bob [Baffert]–that this was going on,” he said. “So I got a letter saying…they chose not to punish me or pursue this any further. They found no reason to do it.”

Greenberg had that letter too. He brought it out and began quoting form it to ask Lewandowski if he recalled that it stated his advocating for clemency on behalf of Dutrow “implicates post-employment restrictions that apply to former state employees, specifically the two-year ban.”

And that's when the former state steward let loose with a rambling, under-oath diatribe reminiscent of Humphrey Bogart's courtroom portrayal of the under-duress Captain Queeg in the 1954 film “The Caine Mutiny.”

“I got no punishment. I didn't even know it was going on. How about that? How could they run [an investigation] without even speaking to me? How can they do that? Well, I know. NYRA does the same thing. They just decide to suspend Bob Baffert and not even speak to him. You think that's right? You're an attorney. Do you?” Lewandowski challenged Greenberg.

“Do you think if I conduct an investigation about you and not [ask you] what the circumstances are that that's right? That's what you're doing with Bob Baffert. You're suspending him without even speaking to him…. How about asking him about charges in Kentucky that haven't even been filed yet? If I was him, I wouldn't answer the question!” Lewandowski snarled.

The outburst continued (repetitive parts have been omitted here):

“[Baffert is] testifying in two hearings now. How could you do that to somebody? A person that was so kind to show his [Triple Crown] horses to everybody. Everybody! Including all of NYRA's executives. All of them went down there. Bob pulled [American Pharoah and Justify] out and took pictures with them and did all that. And I never went down there. Why? Because I felt it was improper for me to do that. It wasn't right…

“And another thing with Rick Dutrow. I never spoke to him until I retired. I called up [a NYSGC executive] and I said, 'How does Rick Dutrow go about reapplying? How does he do it?'…. And so it took six months to get an answer from the gaming commission. Who's responsible? Their job is to protect and to help people like [Dutrow], not hurt him. It's their job, that's what they're supposed to do, make it for the people!”

The conference room remained silent while Lewandowski kept going on about the NYSGC's alleged wrongdoing of Dutrow.

“Nowhere and no-how has [there] ever been [such strict penalization]–10 years and $50,000! And you know another thing? They took his $50,000…. They took his $50,000 and then told him–the was a man who was totally destroyed, had no money, nothing, completely broke–and they made him pay $50,000 and then told him forget about [being reinstated]. You know what that's like? I had the opportunity to do that, but I would never do that to a licensee. I would never take your money when I know you can't work…”

This portion of Lewandowski's venting eventually took up three full minutes.

At which point, Greenberg calmly asked, “Are you done?”

NYRA's lawyer certainly wasn't finished. Greenberg couldn't resist getting Lewandowski going again with another simple question: “Braulio Baeza–is he a good man?”

Lewandowski roared back to life: “Braulio Baeza–one of us is lying! Either Braulio Baeza or me. Are you accusing me of lying?…If you think I'm lying, then just accuse me of lying. Are you calling me a liar? Are you calling me a liar sir? Are you calling me a liar? I am not a liar!…

“One of us had information to help a former [trainer] who was wiped out, sir. Wiped out! They wiped him out! They took 200 horses away from him and he was out of business the next day. They didn't even give him the right to come on the track and pay his help! He was out of business. Done. Finished…. Wiped a person out! That's what you're about? That's what you're representing?…Are you accusing me of lying? I'm asking you a question!”

The hearing officer informed Lewandowski that's “the way it works around here…The lawyer gets to ask the questions.”

After Greenberg yielded his cross-examination, Brewster came back up to address a final point related to Baffert being allegedly unfairly targeted by NYRA. It was a quietly emphatic one that might have been worth having his witness's credibility picked apart.

“All these things [Greenberg] said that were so bad about this trainer, Rick Dutrow. Did NYRA seek to suspend Rick Dutrow?” Brewster asked.

“No,” Lewandowski replied.

“In your career, did you ever see NYRA take after a trainer such as [with Baffert], that never had a violation in New York?” Brewster asked.

“No,” Lewandowski replied, having regained his composure.

The post Credibility Challenged, Former NY Steward Erupts at Baffert Hearing appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

‘Are You Calling Me A Liar, Sir?’ Fireworks On Day 3 of NYRA/Baffert Hearing As Dutrow Case Recalled

Wednesday's session of the ongoing hearing between the New York Racing Association and embattled trainer Bob Baffert finished with fireworks during the testimony of retired New York state steward Stephen Lewandowski.

NYRA concluded the presentation of its case just before lunch, and Baffert's attorneys called their first few witnesses in the afternoon.

Lewandowski was called on behalf of Baffert and, under questioning from Baffert's attorneys, said he had no dealings with Baffert on any integrity or rule violation issues in his time serving as a steward in the state. Lewandowski said he called Baffert sometime after he was suspended by NYRA to offer his support.

“I feel like he's been unfairly taken advantage of,” Lewandowski said. “He's never had any problems in New York.”

Baeza later denied he told Lewandowski this.

Baffert attorney Clark Brewster objected to the scope of Greenberg's questions but was overruled by Justice O. Peter Sherwood, the presiding hearing officer. As Greenberg asked about the fallout from Lewandowski's letter, Lewandowski became agitated and began shouting. The New York commission released a statement following publication of Lewandowksi's letter in the media. Lewandowski also said he heard from New York's Joint Commission on Public Ethics, though it's not clear in what capacity.

“How can they run something without even speaking to me?!” Lewandowski cried. “I know, NYRA does the same thing. They just decide to suspend Bob Baffert without even telling him. How is that right? You're an attorney, you tell me. … That's what you're doing to Bob Baffert. How about talking to him about charges in Kentucky that haven't even been filed yet. … If I were him I wouldn't answer any questions. … He's a person who has been so kind as to show his horses to everybody who asked. All of NYRA's executives went down there, and Bob pulled him out and they took pictures with him and did all that.

“I never went down there, and why? I thought it was improper to do that.

“And another thing about Rick Dutrow, I never spoke to him, before, until I retired.”

Lewandowski said he asked about how Dutrow could go about reapplying for a license, and passed that information along.

“It took six months to even get an answer from the Gaming Commission, whose job is to protect people like him, not hurt them,” Lewandowski yelled to Greenberg, who by then had stopped questioning him. “It's their job, that's what they're supposed to do. They're here for the people, not for purses. And nowhere and no how has these charges ever been … 10 years and $50,000 … and you know another thing? They took his $50,000. There was an ongoing push to get Rick Dutrow reinstated. They made him pay $50,000 and then here's a man who's totally destroyed. Has no money. Nothing. He's completely broke. They made him pay $50,000 and then told him he can't be licensed. … I would never do that to a licensee. I would never take your money when I know you can't work.”

As to the dispute in stories between himself and Baeza, Lewandowski let loose.

“Braulio Baeza, one of us is lying. It's either Braulio Baeza or me. Are you accusing me of lying?” yelled Lewandowski. “One of us is lying. Why would Braulio Baeza speak to me about Rick Dutrow, who he had nothing to do with. One of us is lying. And I'm not accusing anybody. But it's either him or me. And believe me, he said it to more than one person.

“…Are you calling me a liar, sir? Are you calling me a liar? I am not a liar … I thought Braulio Baeza was a good man. One of us had the information to help a man who was wiped out.

“…Braulio Baeza is not a nice person, no.”

Wednesday's session also included testimony from NYRA lead equine safety investigator Tony Patricola, NYRA veterinary services director Dr. Anthony Verderosa, general manager of NYRA Bets Matthew Feig, and vice president of marketing for NYRA and NYRA Bets Donald Scott. At the start of Baffert's case, testimony came from Hall of Fame jockeys Mike Smith and John Velazquez.

[Story Continues Below]

Wednesday's session opened with Sherwood chastising Baffert attorney Brewster for providing a statement to media about Tuesday's proceedings. Greenberg entered the Paulick Report's recap of the Jan. 25 hearing into the record because it contained the statement, distributed on behalf of Brewster by public relations and crisis communications firm Trident DMG. Greenberg called the statement “highly unprofessional at best.”You can find the Jan. 25 recap here.
Baffert attorney W. Craig Robertson said he had nothing to do with the statement.

Brewster tried to say Greenberg posted similar content on his firm's website. This publication has not received statements from the firm.

“Fortunately this proceeding is not going forward before a jury,” said Sherwood. “I'd be much more sharp-tongued if we had a jury here, sir. I do think these kinds of comments by a lawyer during a proceeding are inappropriate. I would ask you to restrain yourself.”
NYRA's attorneys had two primary focuses from witnesses on Wednesday: the potential for therapeutic drugs to impact pre-race veterinary examinations and injury, and the public reaction to Baffert's recent high-profile drug positive in the Kentucky Derby. Verderosa and Patricola both testified that therapeutic, permitted medications given outside time regulations could make their jobs more difficult in terms of identifying sore horses. They also testified to the danger posed to jockeys, grooms, and veterinary personnel by catastrophic injuries suffered on track.Baffert's counsel clarified that neither official had fielded complaints or themselves flagged horses for further examination from Baffert's barn on the basis they were unsound. (Baffert is primarily based in California and does not, according to Patricola, maintain a barn in New York year-round.) Robertson also pointed out that this summer, when protestors demonstrated their upset over the equine fatality rate in New York, Baffert did not have any trainees in the list of dead horses.
Both Feig and Scott agreed they received feedback from NYRA Bets customers following Baffert's announcement that Medina Spirit had a positive post-race drug test. Feig in particular cited a 20 percent increase in customer service queries on the day Baffert held his press conference, and continued with an elevated number of requests from players the next day.“We had a lot of questions regarding, 'Are you going to refund my wager because I bet on the second-place horse, Mandaloun?' or 'Are you going to give me the money I'm owed?'” recalled Feig.
Feig said there is no mechanism for NYRA Bets or any of its competitors to refund parimutuel wagers based on a change in race results after the race goes official. To date, Medina Spirit has not been disqualified from the Kentucky Derby.

Feig said he also heard from customers with queries or complaints about other trainers, any time there are headlines about an integrity issue. That includes Linda Rice, who had her license suspended by the New York Gaming Commission but who is still permitted to race at NYRA while she is appealing that case.
Feig also said that in the course of applying for the required licenses for NYRA Bets to take wagers from customers outside New York, the organization gets a fair number of questions from regulators about various aspects of its business, including finances, policy, and integrity proceedings. The organization also deals with banks and credit card companies to enable it to do business. Feig said that he did get questions “in passing” about the Baffert situation after the announcement of Medina Spirit's positive from regulators, financial entities, underwriters, and banking institutions. Regulators did not ask him questions about Rice or Wayne Potts, who is currently being investigated by NYRA.
Robertson was interested in the fact NYRA Bets saw a wagering record during the time Baffert was permitted to run horses at Saratoga. He and Feig examined handle figures for a couple of races in which Baffert trained entrants. Feig pointed out that one was a stakes race, which usually gets higher handle than non-stakes races, and the other was the start of the Pick 5 and Pick 6. Typically, Feig said he projects and analyzes handle based upon the number of entries and the wagering menu for that race; trainer of entrants don't normally factor into his forecasts.
Jockeys Mike Smith and John Velazquez testified on Baffert's behalf, saying they have always felt safe riding his horses and agreeing they would like to ride more for him. Both said they did not believe Baffert is a threat to the integrity of racing, nor have they ever witnessed Baffert do anything against the rules of racing during their time spent in his barn.

The post ‘Are You Calling Me A Liar, Sir?’ Fireworks On Day 3 of NYRA/Baffert Hearing As Dutrow Case Recalled appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post