Westport TC 26 December 2016 – R 5 – Chair, Mr S Ching
ID: JCA16855
Meet Title:
Westport TC - 26 December 2016
Meet Chair:
SChing
Meet Committee Member 1:
DAnderson
Race Date:
2016/12/26
Race Number:
R5
Decision:
As Mr Markham had admitted this breach of the Rules it was found to be proved in accordance with Rule 1111(1)(d).
Penalty:
Accordingly, Mr Markham’s Horseman’s license is suspended from the conclusion of racing on 30 December 2016 up to and including 15 January 2017. Meetings encompassed in this period are Timaru on 6 January, Rangiora on 8 January, Nelson on 13 January and Nelson on 15 January 2017.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 5, the Property Brokers Westport Mobile Pace, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr S Wallis against Licensed Open Horseman, Mr C Markham, alleging a breach of Rule 869(2)(a) in that he used his whip excessively inside the final 400m.
Rule 869(2)(a) reads as follows:
“(2) No horseman shall during any race:-
(a) Use his whip in an unnecessary, excessive or improper manner.”
Use of the Whip Guidelines provides:
-The whip shall not be used more than 10 times in the last 400m of a race, otherwise this will be deemed excessive use pursuant to these guidelines.
Mr Markham had endorsed the Information that this breach of the Rules was admitted which he confirmed at the hearing. Mr Markham also confirmed that he understood the rule he was being charged with.
Mr Wallis gave evidence and showed video replays of the run home. He pointed out Mr Markham driving MASTER JORDY turning for home when racing 3 back on the pylons. Mr Wallis said that shortly after entering the home straight, Mr Markham drew the whip and used it on 24 occasions inside the 400m. He stated that Mr Markham used the whip 14 times before a brief pause and then on a further 10 times. He said that although the strikes were not forceful, the basis of this charge was that Mr Markham used his whip continuously with his hand on the rein and combined with the sheer number of strikes, was the reason that Mr Markham was being charged.
Mr Markham did not dispute the number of strikes submitted by Mr Wallis. He said he used a whip with a soft tip and the strikes were not forceful. Mr Markham was of the belief that if he did not cross the reins when using the whip, it was okay by the Whip Guidelines. He said he now realised he was wrong. Mr Markham conceded that the whip use was continuous and that he did not cross the reins at any stage or hit the horse on the flank.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Wallis stated that Mr Markham had driven on 36 occasions last season with drives this season 23 to date. Mr Wallis stated that Mr Markham had a clear record and had readily admitted the breach. He said the JCA Penalty Guide recommends a starting point of a $500 fine or a 2 day suspension for a breach of this rule and submitted that after taking all factors into consideration, a $400 fine be considered as penalty in this case.
Mr Markham submitted that he would prefer a suspension as penalty and also requested a deferment of penalty until after Reefton on 30 December where he had confirmed engagements. Mr Wallis stated that the Stewards did not object to a suspension as penalty and submitted that as Mr Markham only drives on average 1 to 2 drives per meeting, that a 4-day suspension be considered as penalty.
Reasons for Penalty:
In determining penalty, we considered Mr Markham’s submission for a suspension and determined that a suspension was an appropriate penalty in this case. The JCA Penalty Guide recommends a $500 fine or a 2-day suspension for a breach of this Rule. To ensure a meaningful penalty is imposed , the Committee have adopted a 4-day starting point for this case due to the low number of drives Mr Markham normally has. The aggravating factor in this case was the high number of strikes being 24 in total. We determined that this aggravating factor commanded an uplift of 2 days to 6 days. We were however, able to afford Mr Markham a discount of 1 day for his frank admission of the breach and a further discount of 1 day for his good record. We therefore determined that an appropriate penalty on this occasion was a 4-day suspension. We also granted Mr Markham’s request for a deferment of penalty until after racing at Reefton on 30 December.
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: ab041ea46a20c7360d59236bcb98d8b1
informantnumber: A8347
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Excessive use of the whip
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 28/12/2016
hearing_title: Westport TC 26 December 2016 - R 5 - Chair, Mr S Ching
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 5, the Property Brokers Westport Mobile Pace, an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr S Wallis against Licensed Open Horseman, Mr C Markham, alleging a breach of Rule 869(2)(a) in that he used his whip excessively inside the final 400m.
Rule 869(2)(a) reads as follows:
“(2) No horseman shall during any race:-
(a) Use his whip in an unnecessary, excessive or improper manner.”
Use of the Whip Guidelines provides:
-The whip shall not be used more than 10 times in the last 400m of a race, otherwise this will be deemed excessive use pursuant to these guidelines.
Mr Markham had endorsed the Information that this breach of the Rules was admitted which he confirmed at the hearing. Mr Markham also confirmed that he understood the rule he was being charged with.
Mr Wallis gave evidence and showed video replays of the run home. He pointed out Mr Markham driving MASTER JORDY turning for home when racing 3 back on the pylons. Mr Wallis said that shortly after entering the home straight, Mr Markham drew the whip and used it on 24 occasions inside the 400m. He stated that Mr Markham used the whip 14 times before a brief pause and then on a further 10 times. He said that although the strikes were not forceful, the basis of this charge was that Mr Markham used his whip continuously with his hand on the rein and combined with the sheer number of strikes, was the reason that Mr Markham was being charged.
Mr Markham did not dispute the number of strikes submitted by Mr Wallis. He said he used a whip with a soft tip and the strikes were not forceful. Mr Markham was of the belief that if he did not cross the reins when using the whip, it was okay by the Whip Guidelines. He said he now realised he was wrong. Mr Markham conceded that the whip use was continuous and that he did not cross the reins at any stage or hit the horse on the flank.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Mr Markham had admitted this breach of the Rules it was found to be proved in accordance with Rule 1111(1)(d).
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Wallis stated that Mr Markham had driven on 36 occasions last season with drives this season 23 to date. Mr Wallis stated that Mr Markham had a clear record and had readily admitted the breach. He said the JCA Penalty Guide recommends a starting point of a $500 fine or a 2 day suspension for a breach of this rule and submitted that after taking all factors into consideration, a $400 fine be considered as penalty in this case.
Mr Markham submitted that he would prefer a suspension as penalty and also requested a deferment of penalty until after Reefton on 30 December where he had confirmed engagements. Mr Wallis stated that the Stewards did not object to a suspension as penalty and submitted that as Mr Markham only drives on average 1 to 2 drives per meeting, that a 4-day suspension be considered as penalty.
reasonsforpenalty:
In determining penalty, we considered Mr Markham’s submission for a suspension and determined that a suspension was an appropriate penalty in this case. The JCA Penalty Guide recommends a $500 fine or a 2-day suspension for a breach of this Rule. To ensure a meaningful penalty is imposed , the Committee have adopted a 4-day starting point for this case due to the low number of drives Mr Markham normally has. The aggravating factor in this case was the high number of strikes being 24 in total. We determined that this aggravating factor commanded an uplift of 2 days to 6 days. We were however, able to afford Mr Markham a discount of 1 day for his frank admission of the breach and a further discount of 1 day for his good record. We therefore determined that an appropriate penalty on this occasion was a 4-day suspension. We also granted Mr Markham’s request for a deferment of penalty until after racing at Reefton on 30 December.
penalty:
Accordingly, Mr Markham’s Horseman’s license is suspended from the conclusion of racing on 30 December 2016 up to and including 15 January 2017. Meetings encompassed in this period are Timaru on 6 January, Rangiora on 8 January, Nelson on 13 January and Nelson on 15 January 2017.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869(2)(a)
Informant: Mr S Wallis - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr Markham - Licensed Open Horseman
Otherperson:
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: 0cd90e7ee4cb4e44af42422cbb5fffb8
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: 0138f4f0a00f8bfea0fbe9cfbdb412b5
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 26/12/2016
meet_title: Westport TC - 26 December 2016
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: westport-tc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: SChing
meet_pm1: DAnderson
meet_pm2: none
name: Westport TC