Rangiora HRC 10 September 2017 – R 5 – Chair, Mr D Anderson
ID: JCA17903
Meet Title:
Rangiora HRC - 10 September 2017
Meet Chair:
DAnderson
Meet Committee Member 1:
RMcKenzie
Race Date:
2017/09/10
Race Number:
R 5
Decision:
As Mr Keast admitted the breach the charge was found proved.
Penalty:
Mr Keast was fined the sum of $400.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 5 the “Rangiora HRC Christmas At The Races 17 December Pace” an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr S Wallis alleging a breach of Rule 869 (2) (a) by Open Horseman Mr J Keast. The Information stated that Mr Keast used his whip in contravention of the use of whip guidelines.
Mr Keast signed the information stating he admitted the breach.
Rule 869(2) (a) provides 'No horseman shall during any race use his whip in an unnecessary, excessive, or improper manner'.
The Use of Whip Guidelines (effective from 1 December 2016) provide:
The whip shall not be used more than 10 times in the last 400 metres of a race, otherwise this will be deemed excessive use pursuant to these Guidelines.
Mr Wallis used the race video to identify Mr Keast driving (7) STILL OF THE NIGHT leading the field, approaching the home straight. He pointed to Mr Keast drawing his whip and using it 14 times free of the rein.
The Committee asked Mr Keast if he agreed that he had struck his horse 14 times and he affirmed that he had.
Mr Wallis stated that most of these strikes were with considerable force.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Wallis said Mr Keast had 36 drives last season and today was his first day of driving this season. He had a clear record for this rule and admitted the breach at the first opportunity. Mr Wallis stated the breach fell in the mid- range but the aggravating factor was the forceful nature of the strikes.
Mr Wallis said the Stewards would be asking for a fine of $400.
Mr Keast submitted that he was trying hard to win the race and it was blatantly clear that he had breached the rule. He added that he would appreciate a fine less than Mr Wallis had suggested.
Reasons for Penalty:
The Committee, in determining penalty, agreed with Mr Wallis that the number of strikes was mid-range and we have therefore, adopted the Penalty Guide starting point of a $500 fine. However, a significant, aggravating factor in this case is the force that was used. Most of the 14 strikes were delivered with, what the Committee considered to be, excessive force, which alleviated the seriousness of the breach from the mid to the high level. HRNZ’s Animal Welfare Policy provides that “the maintenance of the animal welfare of registered horses ensures the best interests of all industry participants are served. The protection of the industry’s reputation is paramount and animal welfare is a critical factor in ensuring this is done”.
Mr Keast’s use of the whip, on this occasion, did nothing to promote the industry’s policy of maintaining animal welfare or protecting its reputation. We have therefore uplifted the Penalty Guide starting point to $600 to reflect the Committee’s disapproval of Mr Keast’s actions.
The Mitigating factors are Mr Keast’s good record and his very frank admission. The Committee assessed these factors as warranting a discount of $200.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
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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: fd0df286a810a24ed3309b46ce34aad3
informantnumber: A09570
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Excessive Use of the Whip
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 12/09/2017
hearing_title: Rangiora HRC 10 September 2017 - R 5 - Chair, Mr D Anderson
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 5 the “Rangiora HRC Christmas At The Races 17 December Pace” an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr S Wallis alleging a breach of Rule 869 (2) (a) by Open Horseman Mr J Keast. The Information stated that Mr Keast used his whip in contravention of the use of whip guidelines.
Mr Keast signed the information stating he admitted the breach.
Rule 869(2) (a) provides 'No horseman shall during any race use his whip in an unnecessary, excessive, or improper manner'.
The Use of Whip Guidelines (effective from 1 December 2016) provide:
The whip shall not be used more than 10 times in the last 400 metres of a race, otherwise this will be deemed excessive use pursuant to these Guidelines.
Mr Wallis used the race video to identify Mr Keast driving (7) STILL OF THE NIGHT leading the field, approaching the home straight. He pointed to Mr Keast drawing his whip and using it 14 times free of the rein.
The Committee asked Mr Keast if he agreed that he had struck his horse 14 times and he affirmed that he had.
Mr Wallis stated that most of these strikes were with considerable force.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Mr Keast admitted the breach the charge was found proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Wallis said Mr Keast had 36 drives last season and today was his first day of driving this season. He had a clear record for this rule and admitted the breach at the first opportunity. Mr Wallis stated the breach fell in the mid- range but the aggravating factor was the forceful nature of the strikes.
Mr Wallis said the Stewards would be asking for a fine of $400.
Mr Keast submitted that he was trying hard to win the race and it was blatantly clear that he had breached the rule. He added that he would appreciate a fine less than Mr Wallis had suggested.
reasonsforpenalty:
The Committee, in determining penalty, agreed with Mr Wallis that the number of strikes was mid-range and we have therefore, adopted the Penalty Guide starting point of a $500 fine. However, a significant, aggravating factor in this case is the force that was used. Most of the 14 strikes were delivered with, what the Committee considered to be, excessive force, which alleviated the seriousness of the breach from the mid to the high level. HRNZ’s Animal Welfare Policy provides that “the maintenance of the animal welfare of registered horses ensures the best interests of all industry participants are served. The protection of the industry’s reputation is paramount and animal welfare is a critical factor in ensuring this is done”.
Mr Keast’s use of the whip, on this occasion, did nothing to promote the industry’s policy of maintaining animal welfare or protecting its reputation. We have therefore uplifted the Penalty Guide starting point to $600 to reflect the Committee’s disapproval of Mr Keast’s actions.
The Mitigating factors are Mr Keast’s good record and his very frank admission. The Committee assessed these factors as warranting a discount of $200.
penalty:
Mr Keast was fined the sum of $400.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 869(2)(a)
Informant: Mr S W Wallis - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr J Keast - Open Horseman
Otherperson:
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: c5f63f5efc2fc1f7bf109c929805fdce
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R 5
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: 5e38e0c1d9ffeb14b18e4ea416760fbf
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waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 10/09/2017
meet_title: Rangiora HRC - 10 September 2017
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: rangiora-hrc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: DAnderson
meet_pm1: RMcKenzie
meet_pm2: none
name: Rangiora HRC