Rangiora HRC 13 August 2017 – R 1 – Chair, Mr S Ching
ID: JCA16163
Meet Title:
Rangiora HRC - 13 August 2017
Meet Chair:
SChing
Meet Committee Member 1:
GClapp
Race Date:
2017/08/13
Race Number:
R1
Decision:
As Mr Sissons had admitted this breach of the Rules it was found to be proved in accordance with Rule 1111(1)(d).
Penalty:
Accordingly, Mr Sissons was fined the sum of $400.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 1, the Bishopdale-Bush Inn TAB’S & Tavern Harewood Mobile Pace, an information was filed by Chief Stipendiary Steward Mr N Ydgren, against Advanced Amateur Horseman, Mr R Sissons, alleging a breach of Rule 869(3) (b) in that he drove carelessly by allowing AS KIWI AS to shift down the track when not entitled to do so which in turn caused SMOOTH MARA to break and lose its chance.
Mr Sissons had indicated on the Information that this breach of the Rules was admitted which he confirmed at the hearing. He also confirmed that he understood the Rule he was being charged with.
Rule 869(3)(b) reads as follows:
“(3) No horseman in any race shall drive:-
(b) carelessly:-
Mr Ydgren gave evidence and used video coverage, with the assistance of Stipendiary Steward, Mr S Wallis, to show that shortly after the mobile start, AS KIWI AS, who had drawn 4 on the front line, driven by Mr Sissons, was in a 4-wide position with SMOOTH MARA, who had drawn 3 on the second line, driven by Mr S Murtha, in a 3-wide position on the inside of AS KIWI AS. Mr Ydgren stated that as the horses were racing towards the first bend, Mr Murtha was maintaining his position in the 3 wide line. He said that in a gradual manoeuvre, Mr Sissons, shifted inwards to a 3-wide position but was not at any stage clear of Mr Murtha who was placed in restricted room and as a consequence, breaks losing all chance. Mr Ydgren said that Mr Sissons had an opportunity to relieve the pressure prior to SMOOTH MARA breaking but did not take up that opportunity. Mr Ydgren stated that the carelessness was at a low to mid-level, however the subsequent consequences of his carelessness, were at a high level.
Mr Sissons stated that he was generally a very careful driver and only had opportunity for 1 to 2 strides to relieve the pressure. He said this occurred at race speed and that Mr Murtha may have been able to mitigate the situation by easing back to allow him the position he was shifting down into.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Ydgren informed the Committee that Mr Sissons has had to date 129 lifetime drives with 22 last season and 28 the two seasons before. He said that Mr Sissons' penalty record was clear and could be described as excellent. He also stated that Mr Sissons was frank and forthright in his dealings with the Stewards and had admitted the breach at the first opportunity. Mr Ydgren stated that although the carelessness was at the low to mid range the consequential effects were high as SMOOTH MARA lost all chance in the race. He said that the JCA Penalty Guide recommended a 10-drive suspension or a $500 fine as a starting point for a breach of this rule. Mr Ydgren stated that the level of this breach was above mid-range due to the consequential effects and submitted that a $350 to $400 fine be considered as penalty in this case.
Mr Sissons made no submissions in regard to penalty apart from confirming he was in a position to pay a fine and that Mr Ydgren’s submissions on penalty were fair.
Reasons for Penalty:
The JCA Penalty Guide recommends a $500 for a mid-range breach of this rule. We agree with Mr Ydgren and find that although Mr Sissons' carelessness was at a low to mid-level, the consequential effects were high, therefore warranting an uplift in the starting point. This uplift we set at $100.
As there were no aggravating factors to consider, no further uplift in penalty was deemed necessary.
In mitigation however, Mr Sissons' excellent record and his frank and forthright admission of the breach, were factors to which a discount would apply. This combined discount we set at $200.
We therefore determined that a $400 fine was an appropriate penalty in this case.
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: c4a0c19c9a6902aefeca7f2e3ff01b1c
informantnumber: A5528
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Breach of Rule 869 (3) (b)
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 13/08/2017
hearing_title: Rangiora HRC 13 August 2017 - R 1 - Chair, Mr S Ching
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 1, the Bishopdale-Bush Inn TAB’S & Tavern Harewood Mobile Pace, an information was filed by Chief Stipendiary Steward Mr N Ydgren, against Advanced Amateur Horseman, Mr R Sissons, alleging a breach of Rule 869(3) (b) in that he drove carelessly by allowing AS KIWI AS to shift down the track when not entitled to do so which in turn caused SMOOTH MARA to break and lose its chance.
Mr Sissons had indicated on the Information that this breach of the Rules was admitted which he confirmed at the hearing. He also confirmed that he understood the Rule he was being charged with.
Rule 869(3)(b) reads as follows:
“(3) No horseman in any race shall drive:-
(b) carelessly:-
Mr Ydgren gave evidence and used video coverage, with the assistance of Stipendiary Steward, Mr S Wallis, to show that shortly after the mobile start, AS KIWI AS, who had drawn 4 on the front line, driven by Mr Sissons, was in a 4-wide position with SMOOTH MARA, who had drawn 3 on the second line, driven by Mr S Murtha, in a 3-wide position on the inside of AS KIWI AS. Mr Ydgren stated that as the horses were racing towards the first bend, Mr Murtha was maintaining his position in the 3 wide line. He said that in a gradual manoeuvre, Mr Sissons, shifted inwards to a 3-wide position but was not at any stage clear of Mr Murtha who was placed in restricted room and as a consequence, breaks losing all chance. Mr Ydgren said that Mr Sissons had an opportunity to relieve the pressure prior to SMOOTH MARA breaking but did not take up that opportunity. Mr Ydgren stated that the carelessness was at a low to mid-level, however the subsequent consequences of his carelessness, were at a high level.
Mr Sissons stated that he was generally a very careful driver and only had opportunity for 1 to 2 strides to relieve the pressure. He said this occurred at race speed and that Mr Murtha may have been able to mitigate the situation by easing back to allow him the position he was shifting down into.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Mr Sissons had admitted this breach of the Rules it was found to be proved in accordance with Rule 1111(1)(d).
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Ydgren informed the Committee that Mr Sissons has had to date 129 lifetime drives with 22 last season and 28 the two seasons before. He said that Mr Sissons' penalty record was clear and could be described as excellent. He also stated that Mr Sissons was frank and forthright in his dealings with the Stewards and had admitted the breach at the first opportunity. Mr Ydgren stated that although the carelessness was at the low to mid range the consequential effects were high as SMOOTH MARA lost all chance in the race. He said that the JCA Penalty Guide recommended a 10-drive suspension or a $500 fine as a starting point for a breach of this rule. Mr Ydgren stated that the level of this breach was above mid-range due to the consequential effects and submitted that a $350 to $400 fine be considered as penalty in this case.
Mr Sissons made no submissions in regard to penalty apart from confirming he was in a position to pay a fine and that Mr Ydgren’s submissions on penalty were fair.
reasonsforpenalty:
The JCA Penalty Guide recommends a $500 for a mid-range breach of this rule. We agree with Mr Ydgren and find that although Mr Sissons' carelessness was at a low to mid-level, the consequential effects were high, therefore warranting an uplift in the starting point. This uplift we set at $100.
As there were no aggravating factors to consider, no further uplift in penalty was deemed necessary.
In mitigation however, Mr Sissons' excellent record and his frank and forthright admission of the breach, were factors to which a discount would apply. This combined discount we set at $200.
We therefore determined that a $400 fine was an appropriate penalty in this case.
penalty:
Accordingly, Mr Sissons was fined the sum of $400.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869 (3) (b)
Informant: N Ydgren- Chief Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: R Sissons-Advanced Amateur Horseman
Otherperson:
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: 6a773cfc0d1cf1213002785119fe97c8
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R1
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: 54373c311738a7bd130af91994c331a4
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 13/08/2017
meet_title: Rangiora HRC - 13 August 2017
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: rangiora-hrc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: SChing
meet_pm1: GClapp
meet_pm2: none
name: Rangiora HRC