Archive Decision

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Feilding JC 25 April 2019 – R 5 – Chair, Mr T Utikere

ID: JCA12067

Applicant:
Mr N Goodwin - Sitpendiary Steward

Respondent(s):
Ms L Latta - Licensed Trainer of MISS OAHU

Information Number:
A12278

Hearing Type:
Hearing

New Charge:
Late Scratching without Authorisation

Rules:
Rule 534(1)

Plea:
admitted

Code:
Thoroughbred

Meet Title:
Feilding JC - 25 April 2019

Meet Chair:
TUtikere

Meet Committee Member 1:
NMoffatt

Race Date:
2019/04/25

Race Number:
R5

Decision:

As the charge was admitted, the Committee deemed the charge proved.

Penalty:

Ms Latta was fined $150. 

Facts:

Following the running of Race 5 (Power Farming Rating 72 1200m), Information A12278 was filed with the Judicial Committee. It alleged a breach of Rule 534(1) and stated that “...L Latta (Trainer) scratched MISS OAHU from Race 5 without authorisation.”

Rule 534(1) provides:

At any time from the Withdrawal Deadline to the scratching deadline (as specified for the relevant Race Meeting in accordance with Rule 510(d)(v) or as amended by NZTR from time to time) on the relevant Race day, a person intending to scratch a horse from a Race (after it has been accepted or is deemed to have been accepted) shall give notice to that effect to NZTR and where such notice for scratching a horse refers to a Race Meeting but does not specify a particular Race at that Race Meeting, such notice shall be deemed to apply to all Races for which the horse has been accepted or deemed to have been accepted at that Race Meeting.

Ms Latta had signed the Information as admitting the breach and had also endorsed it with “I do not wish to be present at the hearing of this Information”.

Mr Goodwin had also canvassed the reasons leading to the current charge in the previous Request for a Ruling hearing presided over by this Committee.

Submissions for Penalty:

Mr Goodwin identified that Ms Latta was happy for the stewards to “put her case” regarding penalty to the Committee and that she had realised that she would face a fine. She was aware that a previous breach of the rule by Mr Bergerson in 2017 had resulted in a fine of $400, but the fact that related to a Premier Meeting at Hawke’s Bay must also have had some bearing on the penalty imposed on that occasion.

Mr Goodwin accepted, after guidance from the Committee, that the Bergerson fine was imposed when the JCA Penalty Guide starting point was a fine of $400. That had been amended since that decision after consultation with the RIU; with the current starting point being a fine of $200.

Mr Goodwin identified that Ms Latta trained a number of horses, and that on this occasion no other horse was disadvantaged from gaining entry into the race. He submitted a fine, no higher than the $200 starting point as appropriate.

Reasons for Penalty:

The Committee was mindful of the JCA Penalty Guide’s current starting point of a $200 fine. We are not able to identify any aggravating factors to warrant an uplift, and in doing so note that if a horse was denied a start as a result of the unauthorised late scratching, the Penalty Guide provides for a higher starting point. In mitigation we consider Ms Latta’s admission of the breach and her good record under the rule. A modest discount is therefore appropriate.

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: 2cefb075036065b964d760303d31fdbc


informantnumber: A12278


horsename:


hearing_racingtype:


startdate: no date provided


newcharge: Late Scratching without Authorisation


plea: admitted


penaltyrequired: 1


decisiondate: 26/04/2019


hearing_title: Feilding JC 25 April 2019 - R 5 - Chair, Mr T Utikere


charge:


facts:

Following the running of Race 5 (Power Farming Rating 72 1200m), Information A12278 was filed with the Judicial Committee. It alleged a breach of Rule 534(1) and stated that “...L Latta (Trainer) scratched MISS OAHU from Race 5 without authorisation.”

Rule 534(1) provides:

At any time from the Withdrawal Deadline to the scratching deadline (as specified for the relevant Race Meeting in accordance with Rule 510(d)(v) or as amended by NZTR from time to time) on the relevant Race day, a person intending to scratch a horse from a Race (after it has been accepted or is deemed to have been accepted) shall give notice to that effect to NZTR and where such notice for scratching a horse refers to a Race Meeting but does not specify a particular Race at that Race Meeting, such notice shall be deemed to apply to all Races for which the horse has been accepted or deemed to have been accepted at that Race Meeting.

Ms Latta had signed the Information as admitting the breach and had also endorsed it with “I do not wish to be present at the hearing of this Information”.

Mr Goodwin had also canvassed the reasons leading to the current charge in the previous Request for a Ruling hearing presided over by this Committee.


appealdecision:


isappeal:


submissionsfordecision:


reasonsfordecision:


Decision:

As the charge was admitted, the Committee deemed the charge proved.


sumissionsforpenalty:

Mr Goodwin identified that Ms Latta was happy for the stewards to “put her case” regarding penalty to the Committee and that she had realised that she would face a fine. She was aware that a previous breach of the rule by Mr Bergerson in 2017 had resulted in a fine of $400, but the fact that related to a Premier Meeting at Hawke’s Bay must also have had some bearing on the penalty imposed on that occasion.

Mr Goodwin accepted, after guidance from the Committee, that the Bergerson fine was imposed when the JCA Penalty Guide starting point was a fine of $400. That had been amended since that decision after consultation with the RIU; with the current starting point being a fine of $200.

Mr Goodwin identified that Ms Latta trained a number of horses, and that on this occasion no other horse was disadvantaged from gaining entry into the race. He submitted a fine, no higher than the $200 starting point as appropriate.


reasonsforpenalty:

The Committee was mindful of the JCA Penalty Guide’s current starting point of a $200 fine. We are not able to identify any aggravating factors to warrant an uplift, and in doing so note that if a horse was denied a start as a result of the unauthorised late scratching, the Penalty Guide provides for a higher starting point. In mitigation we consider Ms Latta’s admission of the breach and her good record under the rule. A modest discount is therefore appropriate.


penalty:

Ms Latta was fined $150. 


hearing_type: Hearing


Rules: Rule 534(1)


Informant: Mr N Goodwin - Sitpendiary Steward


JockeysandTrainer: Ms L Latta - Licensed Trainer of MISS OAHU


Otherperson:


PersonPresent:


Respondent:


StipendSteward:


raceid: 7be62c3c179d0a8533a2597f21b02251


race_expapproval:


racecancelled: 0


race_noreport: 0


race_emailed1: 0


race_emailed2: 0


race_title: R5


submittochair:


race_expappcomment:


race_km:


race_otherexp:


race_chair:


race_pm1:


race_pm2:


meetid: 2921ca63ceae189fda5404d447eab44a


meet_expapproval:


meet_noreport: 0


waitingforpublication: 0


meet_emailed1: 0


meet_emailed2: 0


meetdate: 25/04/2019


meet_title: Feilding JC - 25 April 2019


meet_expappcomment:


meet_km:


meet_otherexp:


tracklocation: feilding-jc


meet_racingtype: thoroughbred-racing


meet_chair: TUtikere


meet_pm1: NMoffatt


meet_pm2: none


name: Feilding JC