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Former Trainer Milton Harris To Appeal BHA’s Ruling

Former trainer Milton Harris, whose licence was suspended in November and withdrawn in January, will appeal the decision of the British Horseracing Authority's Licensing Committee, a BHA spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday evening.

The BHA Licensing Committee's verdict stated in January that he was not a “fit and proper person” to hold a training licence. Originally, his licence was suspended by the BHA in November pending January's hearing, with the BHA's stance, “a result of a breach of the conditions on his licence and related matters”.

A spokesperson for the BHA said on Wednesday, “The BHA can confirm that Mr. Harris has formally notified the BHA of his intention to appeal against the recent decision of the Licensing Committee. We will provide further details regarding the appeal in due course and will make no further comment at this time.”

Harris told PA Sport, “I have appealed. I need to respect the Licensing Committee's decision, which I do, but some of the information they have been given was not correct.”

Some of the BHA's concerns surrounded “the nature and extent of Harris's admitted breaches of the conditions which already exist on his licence, which were imposed in 2018 and Harris's failure to be candid in his dealings with the BHA in respect of those breaches, particularly when the BHA was seeking to provide opportunities for Harris to remedy those breaches”, “misconduct in his dealings with others, including fellow licence holder Mr. Simon Earle” and “in respect of safeguarding arising out of Harris's conduct with young persons employed at his racing yard”.

Harris began training in 2001 and was absent from the training ranks from 2011 to 2018 due to financial issues.

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Baltas Suspended a Year, Fined $10,000 for Alleged Medication Violations

Trainer Richard Baltas is facing a one-year suspension and a $10,000 fine for the alleged race-day administration of substances to his horses 21 times over roughly a three-week span this past spring at Santa Anita Park, according to a ruling posted Friday on the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) website.

Baltas told Daily Racing Form that he's “terribly disappointed” and plans to appeal.

In a bit of an odd legal twist, timing-wise, Baltas is already engaged in a legal fight with the CHRB over essentially these very same allegations.

Back on Aug. 17, some 3 1/2 months before the Dec. 2 ruling was even issued, Baltas sued the CHRB, its commissioners, and executive director for at least $12 million in damages, claiming that the CHRB “destroyed” his reputation by issuing the 47-count complaint that led to Friday's ruling.

That lawsuit stated the CHRB allegedly violated Baltas's civil rights and kept materials from him that were related to the accusations, “thereby forcing Baltas to proceed with information and documents that are being withheld and concealed from him…”

The CHRB's original June 21 complaint stated that “Between the dates of 4/15/2022 to 5/8/2022, 23 horses trained by RICHARD BALTAS were administered a substance on days they were entered into races. Surveillance video captured all administrations by employees of BALTAS's barn. The substance was analyzed by University of California, Davis, who reported the presence of Higenamine and Paenol.”

The Dec. 2 ruling stated that Baltas's suspension will run from Dec. 9, 2022, to Dec. 8, 2023, for allegedly violating the following CHRB rules: #1887 (Trainer to Insure Condition of Horse), #1902 (Conduct Detrimental to Horse Racing), and #1843.5 (Medication, Drug, and Other Substances Permitted After Entry in a Race).

More specifically, Baltas was cited for “Oral administrations of 'X-Treme Air Boost' and other substances on race day.” (While the original complaint listed “23 horses,” the ruling stated “21 counts”).

Back when the complaint was issued nearly a half-year ago, Baltas's lawsuit stated that, “None of the counts in the CHRB Complaint are valid, and each of them reflect a malicious intent by the Defendants.”

Baltas has not started a horse since July 15, at Lone Star Park.

His lawsuit stated that on May 10, “Aidan Butler, [acting] on behalf of Santa Anita, notified Baltas that he was prevented from entering any horses at Santa Anita.”

On June 22, 2022, the CHRB filed an ex parte application with the stewards at Los Alamitos Race Course to refuse the entry of two horses trained by Baltas, the lawsuit stated.

The stewards at Los Alamitos summarily denied these two entries “without a hearing or any form of due process,” the lawsuit stated. “The denial constituted a de facto summary suspension.”

Ballas then sent stock to compete at Churchill Downs. But, according to his lawsuit, track management there “issued a de facto suspension…a decision made, once again, without any due process.”

In July, in the wake of the CHRB complaint, a Los Angeles Superior Court Judge denied a request by Baltas to order the CHRB to allow him to enter horses in the state.

Baltas's lawsuit gave the following timeline of events regarding the allegations:

“Baltas had a horse called Noble Reflection scheduled to run in the 10th race at Santa Anita Park on May 8, 2022. A few hours before the race, one of Baltas's employees were seen on videotape administering an oral dose syringe into the horse's mouth.

“A syringe was subsequently recovered from a feed bag that was tested and had allegedly traces of Higenamine and Paeonol, which are organic liquids that are found naturally in Chinese herbs. Notably, after Noble Reflection was scratched from the race, it was tested and the test results were 'clean,' and neither Higenamine nor Paeonol were found in the horse,” the lawsuit stated.

“Based on the film footage of Noble Reflection…on May 10, 2022, the Santa Anita and/or the CHRB and its agents went back retroactively to review videotaped footage of Baltas's horses from April 15, 2022, up through May 8, 2022, and allegedly saw 22 horses trained by Baltas receiving an orally administered liquid that they contend was X-Treme Air Boost, which is a product advertised for use in horses in the Santa Anita Condition Book,” the lawsuit stated.

“Unlike the situation with Noble Reflection, there was no syringe found in the other 21 instances to be tested. Instead, the CHRB assumed the substance in the other 22 cases going back to April 15, 2022, was the same that was found in or on the outside of the syringe found on May 8, 2022. None of the 21 horses that raced ever tested positive for a Controlled or Prohibited Substance,” the lawsuit stated.

“The CHRB has never explained its decision for going back in time to find violations in the past, and its conduct demonstrates that they and/or the Defendants herein intended to target Baltas to find as many violations as possible. Such conduct demonstrates malice and oppression on the part of the CHRB and its Agents,” the lawsuit stated.

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Vitali Hit With One-Year Suspension for Meth Positive in Pennsylvania

Trainer Marcus Vitali, whose career has been plagued by numerous suspensions and controversies, has been suspended for one year and fined $10,000 by the Pennsylvania Racing Commission after a horse he trained named Single Lady (Shanghai Bobby) tested positive for d-methamphetamine. He was also hit with six multiple medication violation points.

The infraction occurred on Aug. 21, 2021 at Presque Isle Downs in a maiden special weight race won by the Vitali-trained filly. The horse is owned by Crossed Sabres Farm.

The story was first reported by the Paulick Report.

According to the website pubmed.ncbi, methamphetamine is banned in athletic competition because it may improve athletic performance, but there are no studies assessing its effects on performance.

Vitali requested a split sample, which was conducted by the UIC Analytical Forensic Testing Laboratory in Chicago, Illinois, which confirmed the d-methamphetamine positive. The suspension began Feb. 15 and is set to expire on Feb. 14, 2023.

According to the Paulick Report, Vitali has appealed the Pennsylvania suspension. He is currently racing at Turf Paradise and is scheduled to have his next starter there in Tuesday's fourth race.

Vitali is also awaiting word from the New York Racing Association, which has scheduled a hearing that will determine if it can suspend him from racing at the New York tracks.

In a separate ruling, Vitali was fined $500 after being found on Oct. 6 to be in possession of medications without a prescription. According to the racing commission ruling, Vitali was in possession of medications known as Dr. Burch's 40 Equi-Dyne and Dr. Burch's 6 Windy. Both had labels stating that they were “for veterinarian use only.”

This is far from the first time Vitali has found himself in trouble with regulators or track officials.

There are 84 docket entries under his name in The Jockey Club's online rulings database, many of them for medication violations. Between 2011 and the start of 2016, Vitali was hit with 23 medication violations in Florida alone. He was also investigated over a complaint of animal cruelty.

In 2016, he relinquished his license in Florida after being hit with seven drug violations over a four-month period only to resurface at Mid-Atlantic tracks. In 2019, he was suspended for one-year in Delaware after it was alleged that he interfered with a search of an employee's dorm room and ran off with a vial containing an unknown substance. In 2020 he was banned at the Maryland tracks after it was charged that he was the actual trainer of horses running under the name of Wayne Potts.

Still, Vitali has found places to run. He made the bulk of his starts in 2021 at Turf Paradise and Presque Isle and also had starters at Finger Lakes, Saratoga and Lone Star Park. He made 126 starts in 2021 and won 17 races.

It was also reported by Daily Racing Form Friday that trainer Juan Vazquez was given 30 days worth of suspensions by the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission for two levamisole positives from 2021.

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Keeneland to Review Status of Crichton-Trained Runner for Spinster

Having been suspended at Gulfstream for allegedly violating rules regarding the use of clenbuterol, trainer Rohan Crichton may not be able to run his filly Bajan Girl (Speightstown) in the GI Juddmonte Spinster S. to be run Sunday at Keeneland.

Keeneland released a statement Tuesday indicating that it is considering its options.

“We are in the process of obtaining information regarding the reported suspensions from Gulfstream Park so Keeneland is in a position to make an informed decision about race entries,” it read. “As you know, and as is clear from our actions for 85 years, Keeneland continues to work in furtherance of our mission to perpetuate the best in Thoroughbred racing, which definitely includes fair competition and integrity.”

“Right now she's being trained towards her next start,” Crichton told the Daily Racing Form. “Preferably we'll be able to run her in the Spinster. Our second option is the Beldame. I've been very forthcoming with Keeneland and have asked if they will take my entry. There is also the possibility they would let my owners enter her with one of the other trainers they use in Kentucky.”

The Spinster is a “Win and You're In” race for the GI Breeders' Cup Distaff.

So far as the GII Beldame S. at Belmont, also scheduled to be run Sunday, goes, NYRA spokesman Pat McKenna said the matter is under review.

It was announced last week by Gulfstream that Crichton was among five trainers that were suspended after they were found to be in violation of house rules at the Florida track regarding the use of clenbuterol. The others were Georgina Baxter, Daniel Pita, Peter Walder and Gilberto Zerpa. The finding came after out-of-competition testing, which included hair and blood samples, was performed.

Crichton was suspended by Gulfstream and not by the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering, which means his status is not clear cut. Unlike a suspension issued by a racing commission, a suspension by one racetrack does not have to be upheld by another. However, as first reported by the Paulick Report, there is a clause in the Keeneland condition book listed under “special notices” that appears to cover the Crichton situation. It reads: “At the discretion of the stewards, and without notice, the entries of any person, or acceptance or transfer of any entries, may be refused.”

Keeneland's barn notes on Sunday and Monday listed Bajan Girl as a probable starter in the Spinster. Tuesday's notes did not include her name among a list of potential starters.

Owned by Robert Slack and Daniel Walters, Bajan Girl was fourth in the Love Sign S. at Colonial Downs in her most recent start and is three-for-13 lifetime.

A native of Jamaica, Crichton was the leading trainer at the 2020 Gulfstream Park West meet. He is 33-for-161 on the year for a winning percentage of 20%.

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