HR Waikato 5 May 2016 – R 4 – Chair, Mr A Dooley
ID: JCA10556
Meet Title:
Harness Racing Waikato - 5 May 2016
Meet Chair:
ADooley
Meet Committee Member 1:
AGodsalve
Race Date:
2016/05/05
Race Number:
R4
Decision:
For reasons outlined above the Committee find the charge proved.
Penalty:
Accordingly, Mr Ferguson was fined $300.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 4, Mitre 10 Mega Cambridge Mobile Pace, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr S Mulcay. He alleged that Junior Horseman Mr D Ferguson drove MEDIA QUEEN in a manner that caused interference to HEZABLUECHIPBOY when rounding the bend and the early stages of the run home when allowing his mare to shift inwards.
Mr D Ferguson acknowledged that he understood the Rule and confirmed he denied the breach.
Mr P Ferguson assisted Mr D Ferguson at the hearing.
Rule 869(4) provides: 'No horseman shall during any race do anything which interferes or is likely to interfere with his own horse and/or any other horse or its progress.'
Submissions for Decision:
Mr Mulcay told the Committee he would be calling Mr S Abernethy the driver of HEZABLUECHIPBOY as a witness.
The following are the salient points from the hearing.
Mr Mulcay demonstrated the alleged incident on the available video footage. He stated that Mr Ferguson allowed his horse to continually shift down and take the running line of Mr Abernethy. He said that MEDIA QUEEN shifted in under pressure and at no stage did Mr Ferguson attempt to move his horse away from Mr Abernethy. He said it was clear that early in the home straight MEDIA QUEEN interfered with HEZABLUECHIPBOY which had its momentum impeded.
Mr P Ferguson questioned Mr Mulcay as to whether Mr Abernethy was entitled to take the run when he was not fully clear of Mr Ferguson rounding the final turn. Mr Mulcay responded by saying that he was of the view Mr Abernethy was entitled to maintain his position and stated Mr Ferguson was required to keep his horse in a straight line. Mr Mulcay did concede that Mr Abernethy had not shifted to a full 3 wide position rounding the bend.
Mr Abernethy submitted that Mr Ferguson had allowed his horse to shift inwards when he was still driving MEDIA QUEEN out. He said the interference he received required him to pull out for safety reasons. He said Mr Ferguson never laid off his horse and the inward pressure was relentless.
Mr D Ferguson submitted that Mr Abernethy was only ¾ of the way out and there was never a full gap for him around the final turn. He acknowledged there was inward movement but he stated that he corrected MEDIA QUEEN straight away.
Mr P Ferguson reiterated that Mr Abernethy was only ¾ of the way out rounding the final turn. He said Mr Ferguson corrected the inward shift by turning his horse's head out early in the run home.
Mr Mulcay in summing up referred to clause 7 & 8 of the Passing Lane Regulations.
7. Except where a horseman is making a move pursuant to Rule 869(7) and subject to the preceding provisions of this regulation where applicable, every horse shall upon entering the home straight prior to the finish maintain as straight a course as possible to the finish line.
8. Failure to comply with clauses 4 and/or 5 and/or 6 and/or 7 hereof shall be deemed a breach of Rule 869(4) of the NZ Rules of Harness Racing in respect of which Rules 1003 and 869A apply
Mr P Ferguson in summing up was satisfied that they had covered all the relevant matters.
Reasons for Decision:
The Committee carefully considered all the submissions presented. After synchronising the available video films and studying them frame by frame we established that Mr Ferguson was not in a position to shift inwards rounding the bend and in the early stages of the run home.
Mr Ferguson did not have a clear advantage over Mr Abernethy to move him inwards rounding the final turn which visibly impeded HEZABLUECHIPBOY'S progress. Mr Ferguson inward manoeuvre was certainly not conducted in a gradual and acceptable manner.
It was important to note that the head – on film clearly showed that in the early stages of the run home Mr Ferguson allowed his horse to shift inwards into the rightful running line of HEZABLUECHIPBOY. In doing so this meant that Mr Abernethy was forced to take a hold and restrain his horse when he received interference from MEDIA QUEEN.
Mr Abernethy’s and Mr Mulcay’s evidence was supported by the video footage.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Mulcay produced Mr Ferguson’s driving record which showed there was no previous breach of this Rule. He noted the JCA Penalty Guidelines recommended a suspension of 6 drives or a fine of $300 as a starting point when a driver causes interference with another horse. Mr Mulcay considered the level of interference was mid – range and noted the incident resulted in MEDIA QUEEN being relegated from 2nd to 4th place. He said this had an effect on the betting public who had invested in MEDIA QUEEN.
Mr P Ferguson asked the Committee to take into account Mr D Ferguson's clear record and that the earning capacity of a Junior Horseman is low. He added that they would prefer a fine over a suspension due to the fact that Manawatu has an upcoming 2 day meeting and Mr D Ferguson historically gets a large book of drives.
Reasons for Penalty:
The Committee carefully considered all the evidence and submissions presented. The only mitigating fact was Mr Ferguson’s clear record under this Rule for which he has been given credit. However, this has to be balanced against the actions of Mr Ferguson. We consider the level of culpability was mid-range along with the interference assessed in that range. The consequences of the interference resulted in MEDIA QUEEN being relegated from 2nd to 4th place which we consider a significant aggravating factor which warrants an uplift in penalty.
The Committee did have regard for Mr Ferguson’s status as a Junior Horseman, albeit he is experienced.
After taking into account all the above factors the Committee considers an appropriate penalty was a $300 fine.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
Dmitry: This section contains all JCA fields migrated from the raw data.
Data from these fields should be mapped appropriately to display amongst the standard fields above; please make note of any values below that are missing in the above standard fields but should be there.
hearingid: 01b1e24738480bd1bc20f46a1313d7e6
informantnumber: A3999
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Causing interference
plea: denied
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 07/05/2016
hearing_title: HR Waikato 5 May 2016 - R 4 - Chair, Mr A Dooley
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 4, Mitre 10 Mega Cambridge Mobile Pace, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr S Mulcay. He alleged that Junior Horseman Mr D Ferguson drove MEDIA QUEEN in a manner that caused interference to HEZABLUECHIPBOY when rounding the bend and the early stages of the run home when allowing his mare to shift inwards.
Mr D Ferguson acknowledged that he understood the Rule and confirmed he denied the breach.
Mr P Ferguson assisted Mr D Ferguson at the hearing.
Rule 869(4) provides: 'No horseman shall during any race do anything which interferes or is likely to interfere with his own horse and/or any other horse or its progress.'
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Mr Mulcay told the Committee he would be calling Mr S Abernethy the driver of HEZABLUECHIPBOY as a witness.
The following are the salient points from the hearing.
Mr Mulcay demonstrated the alleged incident on the available video footage. He stated that Mr Ferguson allowed his horse to continually shift down and take the running line of Mr Abernethy. He said that MEDIA QUEEN shifted in under pressure and at no stage did Mr Ferguson attempt to move his horse away from Mr Abernethy. He said it was clear that early in the home straight MEDIA QUEEN interfered with HEZABLUECHIPBOY which had its momentum impeded.
Mr P Ferguson questioned Mr Mulcay as to whether Mr Abernethy was entitled to take the run when he was not fully clear of Mr Ferguson rounding the final turn. Mr Mulcay responded by saying that he was of the view Mr Abernethy was entitled to maintain his position and stated Mr Ferguson was required to keep his horse in a straight line. Mr Mulcay did concede that Mr Abernethy had not shifted to a full 3 wide position rounding the bend.
Mr Abernethy submitted that Mr Ferguson had allowed his horse to shift inwards when he was still driving MEDIA QUEEN out. He said the interference he received required him to pull out for safety reasons. He said Mr Ferguson never laid off his horse and the inward pressure was relentless.
Mr D Ferguson submitted that Mr Abernethy was only ¾ of the way out and there was never a full gap for him around the final turn. He acknowledged there was inward movement but he stated that he corrected MEDIA QUEEN straight away.
Mr P Ferguson reiterated that Mr Abernethy was only ¾ of the way out rounding the final turn. He said Mr Ferguson corrected the inward shift by turning his horse's head out early in the run home.
Mr Mulcay in summing up referred to clause 7 & 8 of the Passing Lane Regulations.
7. Except where a horseman is making a move pursuant to Rule 869(7) and subject to the preceding provisions of this regulation where applicable, every horse shall upon entering the home straight prior to the finish maintain as straight a course as possible to the finish line.
8. Failure to comply with clauses 4 and/or 5 and/or 6 and/or 7 hereof shall be deemed a breach of Rule 869(4) of the NZ Rules of Harness Racing in respect of which Rules 1003 and 869A apply
Mr P Ferguson in summing up was satisfied that they had covered all the relevant matters.
reasonsfordecision:
The Committee carefully considered all the submissions presented. After synchronising the available video films and studying them frame by frame we established that Mr Ferguson was not in a position to shift inwards rounding the bend and in the early stages of the run home.
Mr Ferguson did not have a clear advantage over Mr Abernethy to move him inwards rounding the final turn which visibly impeded HEZABLUECHIPBOY'S progress. Mr Ferguson inward manoeuvre was certainly not conducted in a gradual and acceptable manner.
It was important to note that the head – on film clearly showed that in the early stages of the run home Mr Ferguson allowed his horse to shift inwards into the rightful running line of HEZABLUECHIPBOY. In doing so this meant that Mr Abernethy was forced to take a hold and restrain his horse when he received interference from MEDIA QUEEN.
Mr Abernethy’s and Mr Mulcay’s evidence was supported by the video footage.
Decision:
For reasons outlined above the Committee find the charge proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Mulcay produced Mr Ferguson’s driving record which showed there was no previous breach of this Rule. He noted the JCA Penalty Guidelines recommended a suspension of 6 drives or a fine of $300 as a starting point when a driver causes interference with another horse. Mr Mulcay considered the level of interference was mid – range and noted the incident resulted in MEDIA QUEEN being relegated from 2nd to 4th place. He said this had an effect on the betting public who had invested in MEDIA QUEEN.
Mr P Ferguson asked the Committee to take into account Mr D Ferguson's clear record and that the earning capacity of a Junior Horseman is low. He added that they would prefer a fine over a suspension due to the fact that Manawatu has an upcoming 2 day meeting and Mr D Ferguson historically gets a large book of drives.
reasonsforpenalty:
The Committee carefully considered all the evidence and submissions presented. The only mitigating fact was Mr Ferguson’s clear record under this Rule for which he has been given credit. However, this has to be balanced against the actions of Mr Ferguson. We consider the level of culpability was mid-range along with the interference assessed in that range. The consequences of the interference resulted in MEDIA QUEEN being relegated from 2nd to 4th place which we consider a significant aggravating factor which warrants an uplift in penalty.
The Committee did have regard for Mr Ferguson’s status as a Junior Horseman, albeit he is experienced.
After taking into account all the above factors the Committee considers an appropriate penalty was a $300 fine.
penalty:
Accordingly, Mr Ferguson was fined $300.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869(4)
Informant: Mr S Mulcay - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr D Ferguson - Junior Horseman
Otherperson: Mr P Ferguson - assisting Mr D Ferguson, Mr J Muirhead - Stipendiary Steward, Mr S Abernethy - Open Horseman
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
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meetdate: 05/05/2016
meet_title: Harness Racing Waikato - 5 May 2016
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