Kumeu TC 20 May 2011 – R9
ID: JCA11507
Meet Title:
Kumeu TC - 20 May 2011
Meet Chair:
BScott
Meet Committee Member 1:
GJones
Race Date:
2011/05/20
Race Number:
R9
Decision:
The Committee accordingly finds the charge to be proven.
Penalty:
The Committee imposes a fine of $250 on Mr Cusdin.
The Committee would also like to record its appreciation of the very able assistance given to Mr Cusdin by Mr Gibbons.
Charge:
An Information was lodged by Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead against Junior Horseman Mr BH Cusdin the Driver of YANKEEDOOSIE alleging that Mr Cusdin drove carelessly causing interference to MAYO GOLD (Driver NA Chilcott) approximately 400 metres after the start of the race with MAYO GOLD breaking and losing its chance.
Mr Cusdin was present at the Hearing and he advised this Committee that he did not admit the breach. Mr Cusdin is a Junior Driver and was assisted by Senior Horseman Mr DK Gibbons.
Rule 869(3)(b) states: “No Horseman in any race shall drive carelessly.”
Facts:
Mr Muirhead demonstrated the incident by use of the video films which showed the incident from several different angles. Approximately 300 metres after the start LITTLE FRUGIE (Driver JI Dickie) which was racing in front of YANKEEDOOSIE broke and moved inside the pylons. YANKEEDOOSIE moved outwards and MAYO GOLD driven by Ms NA Chilcott moved up into the gap left by the outwards movement of YANKEEDOOSIE. Mr Muirhead pointed to the inwards movement of YANKEEDOOSIE and to the contact with the front legs of MAYO GOLD which caused that horse to break and lose its chance. Mr Muirhead also pointed to ADORA DELL (Driver RE Fensom) which was racing on the outside of YANKEEDOOSIE. He pointed out on the film that that horse was racing wide of YANKEEDOOSIE and did not cause it any difficulty at all. Mr Muirhead said that Mr Cusdin did not have an pressure from Mr Fensom’s horse and that he elected to move inwards and that was the reason for contact being made with Ms Chilcott’s horse. Mr Muirhead also said that the film showed that the front legs of Ms Chilcott’s horse were inside the wheel of YANKEEDOOSIE for at least 50 metres before the incident happened.
Mr Gibbons in assisting Mr Cusdin and by way of cross examination showed Mr Muirhead one of the films of the incident and endeavoured to show that there was insufficient room for Ms Chilcott to move into. He endeavoured to show that Ms Chilcott was at fault and not Mr Cusdin because there was insufficient room for Ms Chilcott and that she had run into the back of Mr Cusdin’s wheel. Mr Muirhead, in answer, used other angles of the incident to show that there was sufficient room for Ms Chilcott to move into and that the inwards movement of Mr Cusdin caused the problem.
Ms Chilcott then gave evidence as the Driver of MAYO GOLD and she confirmed that as a result of the outwards movement of YANKEEDOOSIE and the breaking of LITTLE FRUGIE there was a gap for her horse to run into and that she was improving into that gap when Mr Cusdin moved back inwards and then contact was made with the front legs of her horse and it broke and lost its chance. She did say that she saw Mr Cusdin coming back down and she tried to restrain her horse but couldn’t do so and contact was made. In answer to cross examination Ms Chilcott said that her horse’s legs were definitely inside the wheel of Mr Cusdin’s sulky and that she felt that she had been there for a little while. She said that she tried to restrain her horse but was unsuccessful in doing so and that as a result of the contact her horse broke and lost its chance.
Ms Chilcott was asked by Mr Gibbons if there was a courtesy among Drivers after an incident happens that they allow the affected Drivers to move back into the positions they previously held. Ms Chilcott said that generally yes there was that courtesy but she said that in this instance she saw Mr Cusdin’s horse’s head turned outwards and she thought that Mr Cusdin was trying to get onto the back of Mr Fensom’s horse and get in a one out position. She said that he then came back down and although she acknowledged that she came down gradually she ran out of room and contact was made.
Mr Muirhead by way of re-examination asked Ms Chilcott if she thought she was entitled to go where she did and she replied “yes there was plenty of room”.
In answer to a question from the Committee, Ms Chilcott confirmed that she had yelled out to Mr Cusdin because she saw him coming back down.
Mr Cusdin then gave evidence and said that he saw LITTLE FRUGIE break and he moved outwards to give him plenty of room. He said that he then intended to move back down into the position that he held on the pylons and that his movement was gradual. He said he did not hear Ms Chilcott’s horse nor did he hear Ms Chilcott call out to him. He also said that he believed that Ms Chilcott hit the back of his wheel rather than the side and he believed that Ms Chilcott ran into the back of him. He said that the films (particularly the one demonstrated by Mr Gibbons) showed that there was insufficient room for Ms Chilcott to move into a gap and he believed that he had not done anything wrong and that was why he was defending the charge. Mr Cusdin confirmed that he was not under any pressure from Mr Fensom on the outside of him.
In response to cross examination from Mr Muirhead, Mr Cusdin thought that he only moved out half a cart width.
In answer to a question from the Committee, Mr Cusdin said that he did not look around to see if another horse was moving up on the inside of him. Mr Gibbons pointed out that Drivers could hear other horses around them and have lateral vision and can see if another horse comes into view.
Submissions for Decision:
As above
Reasons for Decision:
The Committee have watched the films quite a number of times and have listened to the evidence put before them. It is a question of fact that there was contact between the sulky wheel of YANKEEDOOSIE and the front legs of MAYO GOLD causing that horse to break and lose its chance. As far as the Committee is concerned the key question is whether Mr Cusdin exercised the degree of care that a reasonable and prudent Driver would exercise in the circumstances.
The Committee finds that Mr Cusdin did not exercise such a degree of care in that having elected to move off the markers he should have satisfied himself that he could safely come back onto the markers without cause interference to any following runners. The Committee notes that Ms Chilcott did take the running on the inside of Mr Cusdin’s horse but that he moved back onto the marker line without realising that she was there.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Muirhead said that Mr Cusdin is a Junior Driver and has a good record in that he doesn’t have any other charges of careless driving against him. He has had 41 drives this season. On the scale of seriousness, Mr Muirhead said that this was medium or slightly lower. Mr Muirhead said that Mr Cusdin was frank and honest in his dealings with the Stipendiary Stewards and he acknowledged that he did come down gradually. Mr Muirhead said that the JCA Guidelines provide that for a breach of Rule 869(3)(b) where a relegation is caused the recommended penalty is a fine of $600 and/or a suspension of three weeks but if a relegation is not caused then the recommended fine is $400 and/or a suspension of two weeks. In this instance Mr Muirhead submitted that a fine of $400 might be more appropriate. Mr Muirhead was asked by this Committee what submission he would make if the Committee was to suspend Mr Cusdin’s license and he said for it to be an effective suspension it should be four weeks.
Mr Cusdin assisted by Mr Gibbons said that as a Junior Horseman he does not get a lot of drives and working in a stable he does not earn a lot of money. He believed that the penalty submitted by Mr Muirhead was too high even though the incident caused the relegation of his horse.
Reasons for Penalty:
In deciding on penalty the Committee is mindful of the somewhat unusual circumstances in this race caused by the breaking of LITTLE FRUGIE. The Committee notes that in moving out Mr Cusdin was being a prudent Driver but that it was his subsequent inwards movement that caused the problem. The Committee believes that Mr Cusdin should have exercised more care in moving back in because his actions affected two horses in the race. Mr Cusdin however is a Junior Horseman and the Committee acknowledges that and he has a good record and has been up front and honest before this Committee. He is to be given credit for that.
The Committee does find that the incident is at the lower end of the scale and that a fine of less than $400 is appropriate. The Committee believes that a fine in the order of $250 is 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: 1e5729f1430732fb12b29220eb1e34f7
informantnumber: 66802
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge:
plea: denied
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 14/04/2011
hearing_title: Kumeu TC 20 May 2011 - R9
charge:
An Information was lodged by Stipendiary Steward Mr JM Muirhead against Junior Horseman Mr BH Cusdin the Driver of YANKEEDOOSIE alleging that Mr Cusdin drove carelessly causing interference to MAYO GOLD (Driver NA Chilcott) approximately 400 metres after the start of the race with MAYO GOLD breaking and losing its chance.
Mr Cusdin was present at the Hearing and he advised this Committee that he did not admit the breach. Mr Cusdin is a Junior Driver and was assisted by Senior Horseman Mr DK Gibbons.
Rule 869(3)(b) states: “No Horseman in any race shall drive carelessly.”
facts:
Mr Muirhead demonstrated the incident by use of the video films which showed the incident from several different angles. Approximately 300 metres after the start LITTLE FRUGIE (Driver JI Dickie) which was racing in front of YANKEEDOOSIE broke and moved inside the pylons. YANKEEDOOSIE moved outwards and MAYO GOLD driven by Ms NA Chilcott moved up into the gap left by the outwards movement of YANKEEDOOSIE. Mr Muirhead pointed to the inwards movement of YANKEEDOOSIE and to the contact with the front legs of MAYO GOLD which caused that horse to break and lose its chance. Mr Muirhead also pointed to ADORA DELL (Driver RE Fensom) which was racing on the outside of YANKEEDOOSIE. He pointed out on the film that that horse was racing wide of YANKEEDOOSIE and did not cause it any difficulty at all. Mr Muirhead said that Mr Cusdin did not have an pressure from Mr Fensom’s horse and that he elected to move inwards and that was the reason for contact being made with Ms Chilcott’s horse. Mr Muirhead also said that the film showed that the front legs of Ms Chilcott’s horse were inside the wheel of YANKEEDOOSIE for at least 50 metres before the incident happened.
Mr Gibbons in assisting Mr Cusdin and by way of cross examination showed Mr Muirhead one of the films of the incident and endeavoured to show that there was insufficient room for Ms Chilcott to move into. He endeavoured to show that Ms Chilcott was at fault and not Mr Cusdin because there was insufficient room for Ms Chilcott and that she had run into the back of Mr Cusdin’s wheel. Mr Muirhead, in answer, used other angles of the incident to show that there was sufficient room for Ms Chilcott to move into and that the inwards movement of Mr Cusdin caused the problem.
Ms Chilcott then gave evidence as the Driver of MAYO GOLD and she confirmed that as a result of the outwards movement of YANKEEDOOSIE and the breaking of LITTLE FRUGIE there was a gap for her horse to run into and that she was improving into that gap when Mr Cusdin moved back inwards and then contact was made with the front legs of her horse and it broke and lost its chance. She did say that she saw Mr Cusdin coming back down and she tried to restrain her horse but couldn’t do so and contact was made. In answer to cross examination Ms Chilcott said that her horse’s legs were definitely inside the wheel of Mr Cusdin’s sulky and that she felt that she had been there for a little while. She said that she tried to restrain her horse but was unsuccessful in doing so and that as a result of the contact her horse broke and lost its chance.
Ms Chilcott was asked by Mr Gibbons if there was a courtesy among Drivers after an incident happens that they allow the affected Drivers to move back into the positions they previously held. Ms Chilcott said that generally yes there was that courtesy but she said that in this instance she saw Mr Cusdin’s horse’s head turned outwards and she thought that Mr Cusdin was trying to get onto the back of Mr Fensom’s horse and get in a one out position. She said that he then came back down and although she acknowledged that she came down gradually she ran out of room and contact was made.
Mr Muirhead by way of re-examination asked Ms Chilcott if she thought she was entitled to go where she did and she replied “yes there was plenty of room”.
In answer to a question from the Committee, Ms Chilcott confirmed that she had yelled out to Mr Cusdin because she saw him coming back down.
Mr Cusdin then gave evidence and said that he saw LITTLE FRUGIE break and he moved outwards to give him plenty of room. He said that he then intended to move back down into the position that he held on the pylons and that his movement was gradual. He said he did not hear Ms Chilcott’s horse nor did he hear Ms Chilcott call out to him. He also said that he believed that Ms Chilcott hit the back of his wheel rather than the side and he believed that Ms Chilcott ran into the back of him. He said that the films (particularly the one demonstrated by Mr Gibbons) showed that there was insufficient room for Ms Chilcott to move into a gap and he believed that he had not done anything wrong and that was why he was defending the charge. Mr Cusdin confirmed that he was not under any pressure from Mr Fensom on the outside of him.
In response to cross examination from Mr Muirhead, Mr Cusdin thought that he only moved out half a cart width.
In answer to a question from the Committee, Mr Cusdin said that he did not look around to see if another horse was moving up on the inside of him. Mr Gibbons pointed out that Drivers could hear other horses around them and have lateral vision and can see if another horse comes into view.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
As above
reasonsfordecision:
The Committee have watched the films quite a number of times and have listened to the evidence put before them. It is a question of fact that there was contact between the sulky wheel of YANKEEDOOSIE and the front legs of MAYO GOLD causing that horse to break and lose its chance. As far as the Committee is concerned the key question is whether Mr Cusdin exercised the degree of care that a reasonable and prudent Driver would exercise in the circumstances.
The Committee finds that Mr Cusdin did not exercise such a degree of care in that having elected to move off the markers he should have satisfied himself that he could safely come back onto the markers without cause interference to any following runners. The Committee notes that Ms Chilcott did take the running on the inside of Mr Cusdin’s horse but that he moved back onto the marker line without realising that she was there.
Decision:
The Committee accordingly finds the charge to be proven.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Muirhead said that Mr Cusdin is a Junior Driver and has a good record in that he doesn’t have any other charges of careless driving against him. He has had 41 drives this season. On the scale of seriousness, Mr Muirhead said that this was medium or slightly lower. Mr Muirhead said that Mr Cusdin was frank and honest in his dealings with the Stipendiary Stewards and he acknowledged that he did come down gradually. Mr Muirhead said that the JCA Guidelines provide that for a breach of Rule 869(3)(b) where a relegation is caused the recommended penalty is a fine of $600 and/or a suspension of three weeks but if a relegation is not caused then the recommended fine is $400 and/or a suspension of two weeks. In this instance Mr Muirhead submitted that a fine of $400 might be more appropriate. Mr Muirhead was asked by this Committee what submission he would make if the Committee was to suspend Mr Cusdin’s license and he said for it to be an effective suspension it should be four weeks.
Mr Cusdin assisted by Mr Gibbons said that as a Junior Horseman he does not get a lot of drives and working in a stable he does not earn a lot of money. He believed that the penalty submitted by Mr Muirhead was too high even though the incident caused the relegation of his horse.
reasonsforpenalty:
In deciding on penalty the Committee is mindful of the somewhat unusual circumstances in this race caused by the breaking of LITTLE FRUGIE. The Committee notes that in moving out Mr Cusdin was being a prudent Driver but that it was his subsequent inwards movement that caused the problem. The Committee believes that Mr Cusdin should have exercised more care in moving back in because his actions affected two horses in the race. Mr Cusdin however is a Junior Horseman and the Committee acknowledges that and he has a good record and has been up front and honest before this Committee. He is to be given credit for that.
The Committee does find that the incident is at the lower end of the scale and that a fine of less than $400 is appropriate. The Committee believes that a fine in the order of $250 is appropriate.
penalty:
The Committee imposes a fine of $250 on Mr Cusdin.
The Committee would also like to record its appreciation of the very able assistance given to Mr Cusdin by Mr Gibbons.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869(3)(b)
Informant: Mr J Muirhead - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr B Cusdin - Junior Driver
Otherperson: Mr D Gibbons - Licensed Open Horseman
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
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