Tag: The Biz

Veterinarian Dr. Erica Garcia was sentenced on Dec. 12 to ten months in federal prison after entering a guilty plea to two misdemeanor counts related to the large-scale racehorse doping case that broke in March 2020.

Garcia was ordered to pay a fine of $2,000 and is ordered to surrender to begin her sentence in March 2023. She will serve her time at a facility in Florida. She is also subject to one year supervised release after her sentence is complete.

Garcia entered a guilty plea to two counts of introducing into interstate commerce adulterated and misbranded drugs.

According to documents filed by attorneys for both sides ahead of the sentencing hearing, Garcia worked for Navarro during Florida winters for 11 years until they ceased their professional affiliation in April 2019. She admitted she administered non-FDA approved substances to Navarro's horses at the behest of Navarro and an unnamed veterinarian from up north.

“He had six or seven horses when I met him,” Garcia wrote in her letter to U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil. “At first impression, I found him to be an ambitious young man hell bent on trying to prove himself. He used to flirt with me while I was tending to my clients in other barns, but I never took him seriously. Then one day I started working for the vet who worked for Jorge which therefore, by default, made me Jorge's vet too. We got along pretty well. He was very focused and you could tell he really cared. One day he left for a couple of years to try his luck at some of the other tracks.”

Garcia administered red acid, which she purchased from RacehorseMeds, a drug called “monkey” (which she said she thought was a vitamin shot), compounded clenbuterol, and SGF-1000.

Garcia's defense team summarized the results of testing on some of the substances Garcia admitted to giving to horses.

“Based on information and belief, red acid is an anti-inflammatory containing hyaluronic acid,” read the defense's pre-sentencing report.

The report also said a test on the substance called “monkey” contained “trace amounts of cobalt.”

Read our previous reporting on cobalt as a performance-enhancer here and here.

In her letter, Garcia summarized the rise and fall of her former client as she saw it.

“He never cut corners on the care of his animals,” Garcia wrote of Navarro. “He studied other leading trainers and tried to incorporate some of their methods into his own training style.

“Then, after a couple of years, things started to change. I think the pressure got to him. He used to say he was going to fire all his clients and go back to training only 20 horses, then 15 new horses would show up in the following week. Around this time, someone introduced him to the standarbred[sic] trainers. They began telling him what to do and tried to convince him to manage his business the way they did. He stopped listening to me as his vet and I could see things were not going in the right direction. I probably should have left then. Stupidly, I stayed.”

“….Time went on and Jorge was no longer the person I had first met. The pressures of the industry were unyielding. The expectation to be the best and to keep improving, growing and winning became very taxing on him.”

Garcia admitted in her letter to the judge that she used SGF-1000 on “another trainer's horse” but did not name the trainer and also that she continued using red acid after she left Navarro's employment in April 2019.

Attorneys for both sides attribute the professional split between Garcia and Navarro to a decision by Garcia or someone on her team to report a suspected case of strangles from Navarro's barn. According to Garcia, Navarro didn't want the scrutiny this could bring from state animal health officials and did not want to be subjected to a quarantine that would limit training.

There were no strangles outbreaks reported in Florida in April 2019, according to the Equine Disease Communication Center.

Since her arrest, Garcia has been working with small animals, exotic animals, and injured wildlife. She still has her veterinary license in Florida although she is precluded as a condition of bail from working on racehorses and has had her track license revoked.

Prosecutors, who had sought a 24-month prison sentence, concede that their decision to allow her to plead guilty to misdemeanors rather than felony charges means the state veterinary board may use its discretion when it decides whether to revoke her veterinary license.

State licensing boards typically do not consider a licensee's status until a criminal case against them has fully resolved.

The post Former Navarro Veterinarian Pleads Guilty To Two Misdemeanors, Gets Ten Months In Prison appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The Federal Trade Commission has issued an Order disapproving the Anti-Doping and Medication Control proposed rule submitted by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority to its enforcement rule after a public comment period. The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, which recognized the Authority, includes a requirement that its rules must be submitted for approval to the FTC.

The Commission's Order explains that its disapproval arises from the legal uncertainty arising from a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which declared the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act unconstitutional. Because the next steps in the litigation could render the proposed rule unenforceable in the states that make up the circuit and in those that are plaintiffs in litigation, approving the proposed rule would be inconsistent with the Act's foundational principle that horseracing rules be uniform across the nation. Accordingly, the Commission did not reach the merits of the proposed rule, which the Authority may re-submit if the legal uncertainty is resolved.

The Commission vote to approve the rule modification was 3-0-1, with Commissioner Christine S. Wilson abstaining.

The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition, and protect and educate consumers. You can learn more about consumer topics and report scams, fraud, and bad business practices online at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Follow the FTC on social media, read our blogs and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.

Statement from HISA

“HISA appreciates the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) decision to deny HISA's draft Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) rules without prejudice as we actively seek to resolve current legal uncertainties. HISA is eager to launch Thoroughbred racing's first and long-awaited national, uniform ADMC program and stands ready to do so. We will re-submit the draft ADMC rules to the FTC for their review as soon as these legal uncertainties are resolved, and once approved, we will implement the program through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU). In the meantime, HIWU will continue to work toward the implementation of a uniform, independent anti-doping and medication control program that is administered consistently and fairly across the United States.”

Statement from Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit Executive Director Ben Mosier

“As the designated independent enforcement agency of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (HISA) Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program, the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU) has spent the past seven months preparing for the Program's implementation on January 1, 2023, and stood ready to enforce this national, uniform program on that date pending approval from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Following today's decision by the FTC to deny HISA's draft ADMC rules without prejudice due to current legal uncertainties, HIWU will continue its education and outreach efforts to all stakeholders in the Thoroughbred industry. As HISA re-submits the draft ADMC rules for the FTC's approval, HIWU will use any additional time before implementation as an opportunity to ensure the industry is even more prepared for an efficient rollout of this Program, which will promote fair competition in the sport of Thoroughbred racing and the safety and welfare of our human and equine athletes.”

The post Legal Uncertainty Leads FTC To Disapprove HISA Medication Rules appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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