Thames JC 5 January 2013 – (heard at Paeroa on 10 January 2013

hearingid: 73af29ef0bdd7956d01b9c245099dd55

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hearing_racingtype: thoroughbred-racing

startdate: 05/01/2013

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hearing_title: Thames JC 5 January 2013 - (heard at Paeroa on 10 January 2013

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RACEDAY JUDICIAL COMMITTEE DECISION

Adjourned hearing held at Waikato Racing Club at Paeroa, 10 January 2013.

Informant: Mr M Williamson - Stipendiary Steward
Respondent: Mr P Lock - Licensed Trainer
Information No: A2806
Meeting: Thames Jockey Club
Date: 5 January 2013
Venue: Thames
Rule No: 534
Race: Nil
Judicial Committee: A Dooley, Chairman - G Jones, Committee Member
Plea: Denied
Persons Present: Mr B Oliver – Racecourse Inspector

Charge:

An information was filed pursuant to Rule 534. The informant, Mr M Williamson, alleged Mr P Lock, Trainer, applied to scratch RED DRAGON, CRACKER and LA PINNICLE without Stewards consent.

Evidence:

This charge arises from the meeting held at the Thames racecourse on 5th January 2013. An Information was presented to the Judicial Control Authority Committee on the day. The Committee heard part of the evidence and then adjourned due to the unusual circumstances of this case, including the fact that the Defendant, Mr Lock had left the racecourse.

This hearing commenced prior to race 1 at the Waikato Racing Club meeting held at the Paeroa racecourse on Thursday 10th January 2013.

A transcript of the adjourned hearing was made available to all parties prior to the commencement of today's hearing. Mr Lock was not present at the 5th January hearing and he indicated that he took issue with some of the evidence that was presented in his absence. Mr Lock further told the committee that he admitted that he sought to scratch his horses but denied the allegation in the charge because there were some unusual circumstances.

Mr Williamson told the committee that prior to race one INTERCITY GIRL had a problem in the tie up stalls where it had struck its head. He said Mr Lock was not happy with the conditions of the tie up stalls and as a result Mr Lock sought authorisation to scratch not only INTERCITY GIRL but his remaining three horses. Mr Williamson believed that circumstances did not warrant him to do so. He conceded in the case of INTERCITY GIRL there were compelling grounds to scratch her based on a veterinarian examination.

Mr Oliver when invited to give his evidence, told the committee that he had nothing further to add from the original hearing.

Mr Lock took issue with the accuracy of some of the evidence at the earlier hearing. He said the facilities were not up to scratch particularly given that two of his horses were scheduled to start in race 10 which would have required staff to hold the horses for six hours. He said that it would have been unsafe to do so.

Mr Lock acknowledged that he had been offered alternative stabling but believed that by taking up the offer he would have denied fellow Trainers the use of those facilities. He expressed remorse regarding his behaviour towards officials on the race day when he was seeking to scratch his horses.

Submissions for Decision:

In summing up Mr Williamson submitted that the Stewards position is that Mr Lock has scratched his horses without the Stewards permission. He submitted that Mr Lock was offered alternative stabling and, on the day there were up to 100 other horses on course and no complaints were received concerning the stabling facilities. Mr Williamson conceded that the Thames course does not have great facilities possibly due in part to the fact they race only twice a year. He also submitted that horses do get injured in stabling complex’s whether racing at Ellerslie or Gore.

In summing up, Mr Lock said that although he was offered alternative stabling he felt it was not fair to take someone else's tie up. He submitted that the facilities at Thames were not up to scratch and it would have not being physically possible for him to lead his horses around for six hours waiting to race. He said he checked with Mr McConnell (Club Official) and was advised that all the yards had been booked out. He said had he known prior to attending the meeting that it was necessary to book a yard he would have made alternative arrangements. He said he had been attending Thames race club for about 30 years and this was the first time that there has been a requirement for a Trainer to book a yard. He therefore believed that these circumstances leading to his horses being scratched were unusual.

Reasons for Decision:

The Committee carefully considered all the evidence including submissions of both the Informant and Defendant. It is the view of the committee that following the incident with INTERCITY GIRL prior to race 1, Mr Lock sought permission from Mr Williamson to scratch his other three runners. It is clear that the Stewards did not authorise Mr Lock to scratch his horses other than INTERCITY GIRL for which the authority to scratch was given due to injury. In the interim Mr Lock left the racecourse with his team of four horses. As a result the remaining three horses were scratched by the Stipendiary Stewards.

The Committee is firmly of the view that Mr Lock did not gain the required authorisation as per the rule.

Decision:

For the above reasons the Committee finds the charge against Mr Lock proved. However, the Committee acknowledges that there are some extenuating circumstances which have been taken into account when assessing penalty.

Submissions for Penalty:

Mr Williamson informed the committee of penalties relating to five previous breaches under this rule, which were dealt with by way of fine ranging from $150 to $350. He said the Stewards had some sympathy for Mr Lock's circumstances and predicament he found himself in on the day and submitted that the matter could be dealt with by way of a fine in the vicinity of $200.

Mr Lock submitted that he wished to move on and put this incident behind him. He had no specific submissions to make in terms of penalty but when prompted by the Committee he asked that the issues he had previously raised in summing up be taken into account when assessing penalty.

Reasons for Penalty:

The committee carefully considered all the evidence and submissions presented. The mitigating factors include the concerns raised by Mr Lock in terms of the condition of stabling facilities which were acknowledged by the Stewards as a relevant factor in this case. The fact that Mr Lock did not gain permission from the Stewards to scratch the three horses and left the course before the matter had been determined is an aggravating factor. The late scratching of the three horses had consequential impacts for both the club’s betting turnover and the betting public.

It was clear to the Committee that Mr Lock did show genuine remorse for his actions during the hearing and that his decision to scratch his three horses was based on his concerns for the safety of his horses. The owners of his horses supported his decision.

In assessing penalty the Committee considered penalties for similar breaches under this rule. Taking these and all relevant factor into account the Committee determines that a fine of $200 is an appropriate penalty.

Penalty:

Accordingly, we impose a $200 fine on Mr Lock.

Footnote: Mr Williamson advised the Committee that NZTR officials will be visiting the Thames Jockey Club next week to inspect the stabling facilities.

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hearing_type: Old Hearing

Rules: 534

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