Tag: TJC Integrity

Jockey Gerard Melancon was arrested Aug. 26  in the final days of the Evangeline Downs meet in Opelousas, La., on a charge of “unnatural stimulation of horses,” according to the St. Landry Parish sheriff's office and the Louisiana state police.

Melancon, 55, was arrested by state police and taken to the St. Landry Parish sheriff. A state police public information officer said he could not comment further on the arrest or provide details because there is an “ongoing investigation.” An official with the St. Landry sheriff's office confirmed the arrest but said the case was in the hands of the state police.

The St. Landry Parish clerk of court said Melancon was released after bail was set at $20,000. A court date has not been scheduled, pending formal charges by the district attorney.

Charles Gardiner, executive director of the Louisiana State Racing Commission and current chair of the Association of Racing Commissioners International, said the investigation is focused on the “possible possession of an electrical device.”

Gardiner said stewards at Evangeline Downs were informed of an incident and contacted state police. The police and stewards will conduct separate investigations, he added. A complicating factor, according to Gardiner, is that the stewards who worked the Evangeline Downs meet that ended on Sunday are not able to convene as a panel more than 48 hours after the conclusion of a meet. Different stewards are working at Louisiana Downs, he said.

Gardiner could not comment further on specifics of the case.

Melancon rode at Evangeline Downs Aug. 24, then was named on mounts Aug. 25-26 but did not ride either card. Following his arrest, Melancon resumed riding Aug. 27-28, closing weekend at the Opelousas track. He is named on horses at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City on Sept. 4.

Under Louisiana state law, Title 4, Amusements and Sports, revised statute 4:175, “unnatural stimulation” of horses can involve giving them illegal drugs or applying or possessing on racetrack grounds “any electrical battery or other apparatus, which might have the effect of unnaturally depressing, stimulating, or exciting any horse during any race.”

The statute also does not allow a jockey to “willfully pull the reins, or do anything whatsoever that has the effect of diminishing the chance of the horse winning any race, whether such action on the part of the jockey is of his own accord, by instructions from the owner of the horse, or as a result of a conspiracy with any other person.”

Melancon has won 5,079 races from 32,444 mounts in a career that dates back to 1984. His mounts have won nearly $90 million in purse money. He finished the Evangeline Downs meet as eighth leading rider, with 29 wins from 180 mounts.

The veteran jockey recently was a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit filed in Louisiana against the newly created Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority. Melancon's fellow plaintiffs in the suit are the state of Louisiana and its attorney general, Jeff Landry; the Louisiana State Racing Commission; the Louisiana Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association; Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association; and the Jockeys' Guild Inc., among others.

Melancon, the only individual jockey plaintiff, claims in the suit that he and other riders “will face restrictions from entering races, disqualification, fines, and penalties for violations of arbitrary and capricious rules like HISA's crop rule, which conflicts with Louisiana's longstanding rule without any proper justification and jeopardizes jockeys' ability to competitively ride racehorses.”

Melancon did not respond to a message seeking comment.

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Editor's Note: The following statement from the Jockeys' Guild is in response to recent criticism of the Guild being part of a lawsuit designed to block Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority regulations. An inquiry to the Guild asking for further details on its statement about threats of “adverse consequences” against the Guild was not answered by the organization's CEO, Terry Meyocks.

It is well-known that the Jockeys' Guild has long advocated for uniform rules governing horseracing and for heightened safety standards to protect the lives and health of its members. The Guild endorsed the creation of HISA and is not opposed to it now.

Indeed, Guild co-chairman Johnny Velazquez has served on HISA's Safety Committee since May 5, 2021. The Guild does not harbor any ill-will toward any individual HISA officials.

The Guild availed itself of every opportunity, both prior to and during the notice-and-comment period on the proposed rules, to educate HISA and the FTC on the rules' impact on its members. To this end, the Guild supplied both bodies with thoughtful and detailed feedback.

Unfortunately, in the version of the rules that went into effect on July 1, many of the Guild's concerns remained unaddressed. Also, to date, many of the Guild's questions remain unanswered. As currently written, the rules single out jockeys — the only “covered persons” whose lives are literally on the line in every race — without affording them the benefit of the enhanced safety protections they sought. Faced with a July 1 date for implementation of the rules, the Guild's board of directors voted (with the exception of co-chairman Velazquez, who recused himself due to his ongoing participation on the Safety Committee) to honor the wishes of its membership and become a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit seeking to enjoin implementation of the rules.

Since joining the lawsuit, the Guild has taken heat from several organizations and individuals in the racing industry, and at times from the horseracing press. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Everyone is not entitled, however, to their own facts. Contrary to the representations of some, the Guild did not join the Louisiana lawsuit merely to bargain the number of times jockeys may use the riding crop. Rather, the Guild joined the lawsuit to push HISA to modify its rules to address a number of concerns, all of which the Guild previously raised with HISA and/or the FTC and all of which are a matter of public record. Among those concerns were:

•     HISA's elimination of the old requirement of having 1 certified paramedic trackside during training, and 2 certified paramedics trackside during racing. Just as the HISA rules require at least 2 operating equine ambulances, so should there be at least 2 operating human ambulances to safeguard the lives of jockeys. Elimination of the old requirement is absolutely unacceptable. It creates a potential for lack of medical care in the event of a multiple horse spill, which happens often. It is essential that the human ambulances be able to provide advanced life support and be fully and adequately staffed to respond to emergency situations.

•     The lack of a centralized database to track jockey concussions, registration and annual physicals.

•     The lack of guidelines as to when a jockey can return to racing following injuries other than concussions.

•     The fact that the HISA rules penalize jockeys – and only jockeys – with a points system.

•     A non-tiered system of unduly harsh fines and suspensions for jockeys that has a disproportionate impact on jockeys who race at lower-grossing tracks and that many jockeys cannot afford.

•     The lack of a centralized database to track jockey penalty points assessed under the HISA rules.

•     Permitting the use of only two models of riding crops, which were initially made by a single manufacturer, creating supply problems and selective enforcement.

•     Disqualification of horses when jockeys exceed the permissible number of strikes, which at a major race like the Kentucky Derby could erode public confidence in the industry and will have a major impact on owners and breeders. 

•     Requiring continuing education for jockeys at every race meet, while other “covered persons” are required to undergo such training only on an annual basis. (Prior to July 1, and following months of conversations with HISA, HISA informed us that this requirement was changed.)

•     Jockeys being required to waive their rights with respect to HISA's search and seizure rules.

•     After July 1, inconsistencies throughout the country in how the HISA rules are being interpreted and applied, leading to confusion and frustration not only among the jockeys, but also regulators, stewards, horsemen, owners and the betting public. 

•     After July 1, selective enforcement of the rules, including but not limited to the riding crop rules, and the selective enforcement of some rules against jockeys only. Picking and choosing which rules to enforce is fundamentally unfair and erodes HISA's stated goal of uniformity. 

Those who have called for the Guild to withdraw from the lawsuit should ask themselves what the HISA rules as currently written are doing for jockeys and their safety. Those who have threatened adverse consequences against the Guild for its participation in the lawsuit should ask themselves how marginalization of jockeys' voices could possibly benefit the industry.

For its part, the Guild intends to move forward. HISA is not going anywhere, and the Guild intends to work with it as a partner. The Guild is and has always been willing to make reasonable compromises. If and when HISA ignores the Guild's legitimate concerns, the Guild reserves its rights, including its right to bring as a last resort a legal action as it has done in Louisiana. But where HISA shows itself willing to listen to the Guild's concerns and to address them, it will find no better friend than the Guild. That is how we move the industry forward. 

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Richard Baltas has filed a lawsuit against the California Horse Racing Board, its officers and members of the Board, seeking in excess of $12 million for allegedly violating his rights to due process as  guaranteed under CHRB Rules, 42 USC 1983, the 14th Amendment to the United State Constitution and Article 1, Section 7 of the California Constitution.

Baltas has not run a horse at Santa Anita since May 7. The following day, one of his employees was observed on video surveillance administering a substance from an oral dose syringe in the mouth of a horse named Noble Reflection hours before he was to race. Noble Reflection was scratched. A syringe was found in a feed bag and testing showed that it contained traces of Higenamine and Paconol. Noble Reflection did not test positive for any prohibited substances, according to the Baltas lawsuit. The Baltas employee who was seen administering the dose, Martin Valenzuela, would tell CHRB investigators he did give the horse a paste known as X-Treme Air Boost, but said he mistakenly gave it on race day and contrary to instructions from Baltas.

Santa Anita officials subsequently reviewed previous video surveillance of the Baltas barn and found 22 other incidents of horses being treated on race day via an oral syringe. The track's owner then announced Baltas would not be allowed to enter horses or record timed workouts for his horses until further notice. The CHRB issued a complaint on June 21 charging Baltas with 23 counts of violating Rule 1843.5 and 1887 (a)  and one count  of violating rule 1902. A hearing scheduled for July 1 has been postponed.

Baltas alleges he was denied the ability to exercise his license rights by entering horses in races at all the tracks in the State of California, including Santa Anita Park and Los Alamitos.  The denial of Baltas license rights is based on what his attorney claims are unproven allegations, without first giving Baltas a hearing, thereby depriving him of testifying in his defense, calling witnesses on his behalf, cross examining his accusers, submitting evidence,  including expert reports, and all of the other rights he is supposed to have before being penalized.

None of the 23 horses in question tested positive for any prohibited substance, with all tested horses testing clean, the lawsuit claims.  Nevertheless, Baltas' trainer rights have been suspended, causing him to lose clients,  lose horses, suffer a loss of reputation and, if the CHRB has its way to suspend his license for a year, to lose his career as one of top horse trainers in the U.S.

The claims against Baltas include 23 counts of a violation of CHRB Rule 1887 (a) which his attorney says only applies in a situation when there is a “… Chemical or other analysis of urine or blood test samples or other tests, prove positive showing the presence of any Prohibited Drug Substance defined in Rule 1843.1.”

Because Higenamine and Paeonol, the two Chinese herbal products found on an oral syringe located in a trash can (but not in the horse) do not qualify as either a Prohibited Drug Substance under Rule 1843.1, and do not appear on the Medication Violation substances under 1843.3, and are also not listed as a foreign substance under the Association of Racing Commissioners International (“ARCI”), his complaint claims that there is no violation under CHRB Rule 1887 (a).

Complaint and exhibits, including CHRB  investigation reports

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The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (HISA) Board of Directors yesterday submitted its proposed rules for HISA's Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for final approval ahead of the program's Jan. 1, 2023 implementation date.

These rules were developed by the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) in consultation with the HISA ADMC Standing Committee before being presented to the HISA Board for approval. This comes after a public comment period and numerous open discussions and meetings with industry organizations and individuals, as well as the careful consideration of more than 200 comments submitted by racing participants and the general public.

“The comprehensive and uniform rules and regulations outlined in HISA's ADMC Program will truly level the playing field for racing participants and fans across the country,” said HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus. “The ADMC Program's standardized implementation of the rules and the consistent enforcement and efficient resolution of rule violations by HIWU will make for a fairer, more transparent sport, and horses will be safer as a result.”

The rules submitted to the FTC include the Equine Anti-Doping and Controlled Medication Protocol, the Prohibited List, Definitions, Arbitration Procedures, Equine Testing and Investigation Standards, and Equine Standards for Laboratories and Accreditation. Additionally, HISA recently made a draft Prohibited Substances List (Technical Document) available for public comment and will continue to solicit stakeholder input before submitting that document to the FTC at a later date.

“These rules and enforcement processes are informed by subject matter experts who understand anti-doping and therapeutic medication control, have been involved in creating and managing equine anti-doping and welfare programs, and have unparalleled experience in testing science and research,” ADMC Committee Chair Adolpho Birch said. “Out-of-competition testing, uniform lab accreditation and results management processes, a robust intelligence and investigations arm, and consistent penalties that are commensurate to potential rule violations are just a few of the components of HISA's ADMC Program that will change thoroughbred horseracing for the better. Importantly, the rules and processes include and build upon successful state programs, such as the Multiple Medications Violations Schedule.”

The FTC's approval process includes another public comment period during which industry representatives, horsemen, state regulators and the general public can once again weigh in on the proposed rules and regulations. HIWU will immediately begin working with state racing commissions and others across the industry to undertake a thorough stakeholder education process to ensure a smooth transition to implementation of HISA's ADMC Program and HIWU's ensuing enforcement. In the future, HISA and HIWU will also work with the industry to evolve the rules based on their feedback and as new data, science and experience on the ground dictates.

Jonathan Taylor, chair of HIWU's Advisory Council, said: “These new ADMC regulations, incorporating best practice from current equine anti-doping programs and from the World Anti-Doping Code, and reflecting the extensive and helpful feedback received from stakeholders, promise a new beginning for U.S. Thoroughbred racing. The Advisory Council looks forward to overseeing and supporting HIWU's efforts to implement and enforce these new regulations robustly, consistently, and fairly across the whole of the sport.”

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