R Tauranga 24 March 2018 – R 6 – Chair, Mr G Jones
ID: JCA13824
Code:
Thoroughbred
Meet Title:
Racing Tauranga - 24 March 2018
Meet Chair:
GJones
Meet Committee Member 1:
ASmith
Race Date:
2018/03/24
Race Number:
R 6
Decision:
As Mr Jones admitted the breach the Committee found the charge proved.
Penalty:
Mr Jones was fined $500.
Facts:
Following the running of race 6, the Windsor Park Stud Japan NZ International Trophy (Group 2), an Information was filed pursuant to Rule 638 (3)(b)(ii). The Informant, Mr Oatham, alleged that Mr Jones used the whip excessively on his mount OUR KING SWAY prior to the 100 metres.
Rule 638(3)(b)(ii) provides: A Rider shall not:
(ii) strike a horse with a whip in a manner or to an extent which is excessive
The “Guidelines With Respect to Acceptable Use of the Whip” effective 1 August 2017 provides:
Without affecting the generality of Rule 638(3)(b) a rider may be penalised if their whip use is outside of the following guidelines:
Inside the final 600 metres of any Race, official trial or jump-out a horse may be struck with the drawn whip up to five times after which the rider must cease their use of the whip for a minimum of five strides before striking the horse again with the drawn whip, with this restriction to apply prior to the final 100 metres. The whip may then be used at the rider’s discretion until the winning post is reached.
Prior to the final 600 metres of a race, official trial or jump-out the use of the drawn whip is acceptable if used in moderation and not continually.
Mr Jones acknowledged that he understood the Rule and the nature of the charge. He also confirmed his admission of the breach.
Stipendiary Steward Mr Coles demonstrated the breach using the available video footage. He identified Mr Jones and showed that he struck his mount 11 times prior to the 100 metres. He said that Mr Jones paused briefly between the first and second strikes and the remainder were continuous. He added it was of particular concern that some of the strikes were forceful.
Mr Jones freely acknowledged the number of strikes. He said that just prior to the 100 metre marker he was racing tight quarters and concentrating on trying to obtain a clear run, as opposed to counting the number of his whip strikes. He also said at that particular point he was not aware of where the 100 metre mark was situated.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Oatham said that Mr Jones has had a clear record under this rule over the past 12 months. He said that although the JCA guidelines established a starting point of $300 for a first breach, the Committee should consider an uplift from the starting point due to the status of the race. He also submitted that the breach was slightly above mid-range due to the force applied as well as the number of continuous strikes. He added that Mr Jones' mount finished in 4th place.
Mr Jones submitted that, as far as he could recall, in a career spanning over 8000 rides he has rarely, if ever, been charged with a breach of the whip rule. In relation to the force applied, Mr Jones acknowledged that he had an extravagant whip action, but it did not necessarily mean he was hitting his mount hard. In terms of any proposed fine, Mr Jones asked the Committee to note that he generally receives no more than two rides per meeting and that a fine over $300 would be more than his combined riding fee and percentage for finishing in 4th place.
Reasons for Penalty:
In determination of penalty the Committee considered all the evidence and submissions presented. We also reviewed the video footage and confirmed the number of strikes and noted that at least 4 of them were particularly forceful, and but for the brief pause between the first and second strikes the remainder of them were continuous.
The Committee referenced penalties that have been recently issued for comparable breaches. We had particular regard for similarities and points of difference. The Committee also had regard for rule 920 (2) noting the status of the race (Group 2) and stakes payable ($100,000).
The JCA Guidelines establish a $300 fine for a first breach of this rule. We determined Mr Jones’ admission and good record to be neutral factors. Taking all matters into account the Committee concludes that a penalty uplift of $200, from the starting point, is appropriate in this case.
There are no exceptional mitigating factors.
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: 73d43f957323c21d3e9a8934a59d661d
informantnumber: A10051
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Excessive use of whip
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 25/03/2018
hearing_title: R Tauranga 24 March 2018 – R 6 - Chair, Mr G Jones
charge:
facts:
Following the running of race 6, the Windsor Park Stud Japan NZ International Trophy (Group 2), an Information was filed pursuant to Rule 638 (3)(b)(ii). The Informant, Mr Oatham, alleged that Mr Jones used the whip excessively on his mount OUR KING SWAY prior to the 100 metres.
Rule 638(3)(b)(ii) provides: A Rider shall not:
(ii) strike a horse with a whip in a manner or to an extent which is excessive
The “Guidelines With Respect to Acceptable Use of the Whip” effective 1 August 2017 provides:
Without affecting the generality of Rule 638(3)(b) a rider may be penalised if their whip use is outside of the following guidelines:
Inside the final 600 metres of any Race, official trial or jump-out a horse may be struck with the drawn whip up to five times after which the rider must cease their use of the whip for a minimum of five strides before striking the horse again with the drawn whip, with this restriction to apply prior to the final 100 metres. The whip may then be used at the rider’s discretion until the winning post is reached.
Prior to the final 600 metres of a race, official trial or jump-out the use of the drawn whip is acceptable if used in moderation and not continually.
Mr Jones acknowledged that he understood the Rule and the nature of the charge. He also confirmed his admission of the breach.
Stipendiary Steward Mr Coles demonstrated the breach using the available video footage. He identified Mr Jones and showed that he struck his mount 11 times prior to the 100 metres. He said that Mr Jones paused briefly between the first and second strikes and the remainder were continuous. He added it was of particular concern that some of the strikes were forceful.
Mr Jones freely acknowledged the number of strikes. He said that just prior to the 100 metre marker he was racing tight quarters and concentrating on trying to obtain a clear run, as opposed to counting the number of his whip strikes. He also said at that particular point he was not aware of where the 100 metre mark was situated.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Mr Jones admitted the breach the Committee found the charge proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Oatham said that Mr Jones has had a clear record under this rule over the past 12 months. He said that although the JCA guidelines established a starting point of $300 for a first breach, the Committee should consider an uplift from the starting point due to the status of the race. He also submitted that the breach was slightly above mid-range due to the force applied as well as the number of continuous strikes. He added that Mr Jones' mount finished in 4th place.
Mr Jones submitted that, as far as he could recall, in a career spanning over 8000 rides he has rarely, if ever, been charged with a breach of the whip rule. In relation to the force applied, Mr Jones acknowledged that he had an extravagant whip action, but it did not necessarily mean he was hitting his mount hard. In terms of any proposed fine, Mr Jones asked the Committee to note that he generally receives no more than two rides per meeting and that a fine over $300 would be more than his combined riding fee and percentage for finishing in 4th place.
reasonsforpenalty:
In determination of penalty the Committee considered all the evidence and submissions presented. We also reviewed the video footage and confirmed the number of strikes and noted that at least 4 of them were particularly forceful, and but for the brief pause between the first and second strikes the remainder of them were continuous.
The Committee referenced penalties that have been recently issued for comparable breaches. We had particular regard for similarities and points of difference. The Committee also had regard for rule 920 (2) noting the status of the race (Group 2) and stakes payable ($100,000).
The JCA Guidelines establish a $300 fine for a first breach of this rule. We determined Mr Jones’ admission and good record to be neutral factors. Taking all matters into account the Committee concludes that a penalty uplift of $200, from the starting point, is appropriate in this case.
There are no exceptional mitigating factors.
penalty:
Mr Jones was fined $500.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: Rule: 638(3)(b)(ii)
Informant: Mr J Oatham – Chief Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr B R Jones - Rider of OUR KING SWAY
Otherperson: A Coles - Stipendiary Steward
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: c38cb8f372a5d50f06c449549275bb18
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R 6
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: 7aedf55b8a2827965d877a8dd5b36c97
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 24/03/2018
meet_title: Racing Tauranga - 24 March 2018
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: racing-tauranga
meet_racingtype: thoroughbred-racing
meet_chair: GJones
meet_pm1: ASmith
meet_pm2: none
name: Racing Tauranga