Manawatu HRC 22 February 2011 – R 3
ID: JCA10693
Meet Title:
Manawatu HRC - 22 February 2011
Meet Chair:
PWilliams
Meet Committee Member 1:
NMcCutcheon
Race Date:
2011/02/22
Race Number:
R3
Decision:
The charge is proved.
Penalty:
The Committee has decided a period of suspension is appropriate in this case. Taking into account Rule 1304(1) Mr Dickson is suspended from the close of racing on Tuesday 22 February 2011 to the close of racing on Tuesday 15 March 2011. This is a 3 week period encompassing 6 North Island driving days.
Charge:
Following the running of race 3, information 69103 was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr S Renault under rule 869(4) and 4 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations. The information stated that “S G Dickson “Alta Panache” drove in a manner causing interference to “El Heartland” (T W Mitchell) when allowing his horse to shift into the passing lane.
Rule 869 (4) states “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.
Clause 4 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations states “In the last lap of any race the leading horse on the running line shall, upon entering the home straight, maintain as straight a course as possible parallel to the running line and allow the trailing horses full access to the expanded inside lane.
Clause 8 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations states: “Failure to comply with clauses 4………. shall be deemed a breach of rule 869 (4) of the NZ Rules of Harness Racing……”.
Mr Dickson inicated the breach of the rule was not admitted.
Facts:
Mr Renault asked Mr Muirhead to show the films of what had occurred. Mr Renault identified “Alta Panache” driven by Mr Dickson entering the home straight in the lead with “El Heartland” driven by Mr Mitchell immediately behind him in the trail. He said the film showed that on straightening up Mr Dickson allowed his horse to move down into the passing lane and by failing to take corrective action he caused interference to Mr Mitchell who had to take hold of his horse and lose momentum. He said Mr Mitchell was entitled to move into the passing lane and Mr Dickson’s actions had denied him the access he was entitled to.
Mr Renault then asked Mr Muirhead to give his interpretation of the film. He said as Mr Dickson entered the home straight he moved inwards and continued to drive out hitting his horse with the whip and made no attempt to pull back out from his position in the passing lane. He said Mr Mitchell was behind Mr Dickson on straightening up and was driving with the whip as he tried to get into the passing lane. He said he was restrained from doing so because of Mr Dickson’s inwards movement into the passing lane. He said Mr Ferguson “Presidents Friend” had come up alongside Mr Dickson but there was a significant gap between the horses and he played no part in forcing Mr Dickson into the passing lane as he had already been it in for approximately 100m when Mr Ferguson drew level with Mr Dickson.
Mr Renault asked Mr Mitchell to describe what happened as the horses turned for home. He said he tried to move into the passing lane but Mr Dickson who was in front of him moved across and he had no room to move up on the inside of Mr Dickson. He indicated he wasn’t sure if his chances had really been affected but agreed he did have to restrain his horse and in doing so lost momentum. He also said he did not see any pressure being placed by horses on the outside of Mr Dickson as he was concentrating on driving his own horse.
Mr Dickson asked Mr Mitchell if, when the passing lane had become available, he was going good enough to take it. He replied that he was struggling on the turn and he couldn’t say whether, had he be able to get into the lane, he would have finished any closer.
Mr Dickson called Mr Ferguson as a witness. He said that as he turned for home his horse was hanging badly on one rein. He managed to pull the ear plugs and get his head in from of Mr Dickson and when he then pulled the pull down blinds his horse “ran in badly”. He then straightened his horse and said that it basically pulled up.
Mr Dickson said that because Mr Ferguson had moved in on him had he pulled out to allow Mr Mitchell access to the passing lane it is likely he would have made contact with Mr Ferguson and broken but by maintaining the line he was on he was able to finish the race without breaking.
To a question from Mr Renault Mr Ferguson said he did not put pressure on Mr Dickson but when he pulled the blinds (approximately 100m from the finish) he did move in and prevent him from correcting his line.
Submissions for Decision:
.
Reasons for Decision:
We have considered the films of the final 300m of the race and the submissions of all parties. The head on film shows that on entering the home straight “Alta Panache” did not maintain a straight line and moved down into the passing line thus denying “El Heartland” its rightful opportunity to move into the passing lane. We agree that Mr Mitchell did have to momentarily restrain “El Heartland” and that he lost his momentum and couldn’t drive his horse fully out to the finish. We believe Mr Dickson did have an opportunity to immediately straighten horse before Mr Ferguson moved alongside and that the actions of Mr Ferguson played no part in Mr Dickson initially moving down to the passing lane as by the time Mr Ferguson came up alongside Mr Dickson he (Mr Dickson) he had already been in the passing lane for approximately 100m.
We agree the actions of Mr Dickson mean he has breached clause 4 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations and as such has breached rule 869 (4) in respect of which Rules 1003 and 869(8) apply.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Renault said the JCA Penalty Guide stated that for a breach of this rule involving a relegation (Mr Dickson had been relegated from 3rd to 4th at an earlier hearing of a protest) a $600 fine and/or a 3 week suspension should be considered. He said Mr Dickson had been charged with causing interference under rule 869(3)(b) on 8 February at the Wairarapa HRC meeting and had been fined $300. He said that the Stewards considered a breach of this rule that caused a relegation was at the high end of the scale and believed he should be fined $400 and his license suspended for 2-3 weeks. He said Mr Dickson had had 81 drives this season and 134 last season.
Mr Dickson said he would prefer a suspension to a fine.
Reasons for Penalty:
The Committee has considered the submissions on penalty. We have taken into account that at the earlier protest hearing Mr Dickson’s horse was relegated from 3rd to 4th. Whilst the difference in stake money was only $225 it was a “First 4” race which meant there were consequential affects for trifecta and first 4 punters. We have also noted that this is the second charge of “interference” Mr Dickson has had in the last 2 weeks although we also note that prior to the earlier charge he has had no similar charges in the previous 12 months. The Committee believes this breach is at the midpoint rather than at the high end of the scale. We have also hade regard for the JCA guidelines on the penalty for a breach of this rule. Finally we have noted Mr Dickson’s preference that any penalty not have a financial component.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
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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: 1078a1c3fcc3a4dfc187e585c12fff48
informantnumber: 69103
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge:
plea: denied
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 09/02/2011
hearing_title: Manawatu HRC 22 February 2011 - R 3
charge:
Following the running of race 3, information 69103 was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr S Renault under rule 869(4) and 4 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations. The information stated that “S G Dickson “Alta Panache” drove in a manner causing interference to “El Heartland” (T W Mitchell) when allowing his horse to shift into the passing lane.
Rule 869 (4) states “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.
Clause 4 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations states “In the last lap of any race the leading horse on the running line shall, upon entering the home straight, maintain as straight a course as possible parallel to the running line and allow the trailing horses full access to the expanded inside lane.
Clause 8 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations states: “Failure to comply with clauses 4………. shall be deemed a breach of rule 869 (4) of the NZ Rules of Harness Racing……”.
Mr Dickson inicated the breach of the rule was not admitted.
facts:
Mr Renault asked Mr Muirhead to show the films of what had occurred. Mr Renault identified “Alta Panache” driven by Mr Dickson entering the home straight in the lead with “El Heartland” driven by Mr Mitchell immediately behind him in the trail. He said the film showed that on straightening up Mr Dickson allowed his horse to move down into the passing lane and by failing to take corrective action he caused interference to Mr Mitchell who had to take hold of his horse and lose momentum. He said Mr Mitchell was entitled to move into the passing lane and Mr Dickson’s actions had denied him the access he was entitled to.
Mr Renault then asked Mr Muirhead to give his interpretation of the film. He said as Mr Dickson entered the home straight he moved inwards and continued to drive out hitting his horse with the whip and made no attempt to pull back out from his position in the passing lane. He said Mr Mitchell was behind Mr Dickson on straightening up and was driving with the whip as he tried to get into the passing lane. He said he was restrained from doing so because of Mr Dickson’s inwards movement into the passing lane. He said Mr Ferguson “Presidents Friend” had come up alongside Mr Dickson but there was a significant gap between the horses and he played no part in forcing Mr Dickson into the passing lane as he had already been it in for approximately 100m when Mr Ferguson drew level with Mr Dickson.
Mr Renault asked Mr Mitchell to describe what happened as the horses turned for home. He said he tried to move into the passing lane but Mr Dickson who was in front of him moved across and he had no room to move up on the inside of Mr Dickson. He indicated he wasn’t sure if his chances had really been affected but agreed he did have to restrain his horse and in doing so lost momentum. He also said he did not see any pressure being placed by horses on the outside of Mr Dickson as he was concentrating on driving his own horse.
Mr Dickson asked Mr Mitchell if, when the passing lane had become available, he was going good enough to take it. He replied that he was struggling on the turn and he couldn’t say whether, had he be able to get into the lane, he would have finished any closer.
Mr Dickson called Mr Ferguson as a witness. He said that as he turned for home his horse was hanging badly on one rein. He managed to pull the ear plugs and get his head in from of Mr Dickson and when he then pulled the pull down blinds his horse “ran in badly”. He then straightened his horse and said that it basically pulled up.
Mr Dickson said that because Mr Ferguson had moved in on him had he pulled out to allow Mr Mitchell access to the passing lane it is likely he would have made contact with Mr Ferguson and broken but by maintaining the line he was on he was able to finish the race without breaking.
To a question from Mr Renault Mr Ferguson said he did not put pressure on Mr Dickson but when he pulled the blinds (approximately 100m from the finish) he did move in and prevent him from correcting his line.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
.
reasonsfordecision:
We have considered the films of the final 300m of the race and the submissions of all parties. The head on film shows that on entering the home straight “Alta Panache” did not maintain a straight line and moved down into the passing line thus denying “El Heartland” its rightful opportunity to move into the passing lane. We agree that Mr Mitchell did have to momentarily restrain “El Heartland” and that he lost his momentum and couldn’t drive his horse fully out to the finish. We believe Mr Dickson did have an opportunity to immediately straighten horse before Mr Ferguson moved alongside and that the actions of Mr Ferguson played no part in Mr Dickson initially moving down to the passing lane as by the time Mr Ferguson came up alongside Mr Dickson he (Mr Dickson) he had already been in the passing lane for approximately 100m.
We agree the actions of Mr Dickson mean he has breached clause 4 of the “Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight” Regulations and as such has breached rule 869 (4) in respect of which Rules 1003 and 869(8) apply.
Decision:
The charge is proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Renault said the JCA Penalty Guide stated that for a breach of this rule involving a relegation (Mr Dickson had been relegated from 3rd to 4th at an earlier hearing of a protest) a $600 fine and/or a 3 week suspension should be considered. He said Mr Dickson had been charged with causing interference under rule 869(3)(b) on 8 February at the Wairarapa HRC meeting and had been fined $300. He said that the Stewards considered a breach of this rule that caused a relegation was at the high end of the scale and believed he should be fined $400 and his license suspended for 2-3 weeks. He said Mr Dickson had had 81 drives this season and 134 last season.
Mr Dickson said he would prefer a suspension to a fine.
reasonsforpenalty:
The Committee has considered the submissions on penalty. We have taken into account that at the earlier protest hearing Mr Dickson’s horse was relegated from 3rd to 4th. Whilst the difference in stake money was only $225 it was a “First 4” race which meant there were consequential affects for trifecta and first 4 punters. We have also noted that this is the second charge of “interference” Mr Dickson has had in the last 2 weeks although we also note that prior to the earlier charge he has had no similar charges in the previous 12 months. The Committee believes this breach is at the midpoint rather than at the high end of the scale. We have also hade regard for the JCA guidelines on the penalty for a breach of this rule. Finally we have noted Mr Dickson’s preference that any penalty not have a financial component.
penalty:
The Committee has decided a period of suspension is appropriate in this case. Taking into account Rule 1304(1) Mr Dickson is suspended from the close of racing on Tuesday 22 February 2011 to the close of racing on Tuesday 15 March 2011. This is a 3 week period encompassing 6 North Island driving days.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869 (4) and clause 4 of the "Passing Lanes, False Rails and Home Straight" Regulations
Informant: Mr S Renault - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr S Dickson - Open Horseman
Otherperson: Mr T Mitchell - Open Horseman, Mr P Ferguson, Mr J Muirhead - Stipendiary Steward, Mr R Neal
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
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