Westport TC 6 March 2020 – R 4 – Chair, Mr D Anderson
ID: JCA13956
Meet Title:
Westport TC - 6 March 2020
Meet Chair:
DAnderson
Meet Committee Member 1:
RMcKenzie
Race Date:
2020/03/06
Race Number:
R 4
Decision:
The charge was found proved.
Penalty:
Accordingly, Miss Diamant is fined $250.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 4 an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr Williams alleging a breach of Rule 870(1) by Junior Driver Miss S Diamant. The information alleged; “S Diamant (SHPEEDY) allowed her horse to pace for a distance after 100 metres and in doing so she failed to take all reasonable steps to return the horse to its proper gait at the earliest opportunity”.
Miss Diamant signed the information admitting the breach and stated she was conversant with the Rule.
Rule 870 provides as follows:
(1) When any horse breaks from its gait in any race its driver shall immediately take all reasonable steps to return it to its proper gait and where clearance exists immediately take such horse clear of the field.
Mr Williams with assistance of Mr Renault identified Miss Diamant (SHPEEDY) gallop for a few strides at the start of the race and then trot for approximately 100 metres. Mr Renault then pointed to the horse switch into a pace and Miss Diamant looked downwards immediately.
He stated it appeared Miss Diamant was aware of the change in gait but then showed how she continued on for approximately 450 metres before her horse became unbalanced and galloped. Mr Williams said the concern was that although Miss Diamant realised something was wrong, she continued on chasing the field.
Miss Diamant said she was unsure whether she was in a pace and was fooled by the smooth transition the horse had made.
Mr Thornley stated it was only Miss Diamant’s third drive on a trotter. He said SHPEEDY appears to be an expert at switching gait and could have fooled many more experienced drivers.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Williams alluded to the Penalty Guidelines and that Miss Diamant has had only 10 drives during this current season. He said the Stewards saw a fine of no less than $250 as appropriate under the circumstances.
Mr Thornley and Miss Diamant had no submissions to make on Penalty.
Reasons for Penalty:
The JCA Penalty Guide provides an 8-drive suspension or a $400 fine as a starting point for a breach of this rule.
The Committee agree a fine is appropriate and although Miss Diamant had driven her horse for a considerable distance in the wrong gait, which may be seen as an aggravating factor, we have consideration for Miss Diamant's status as a Junior Driver and her lack of experience and her minimal exposure to driving trotters.
The mitigating factors are Miss Diamant’s clear record and admission.
Considering all the above factors the Committee find a $250 fine is an appropriate penalty in this case.
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: 8447ea9f65c9389aba52d025c5e4683a
informantnumber: A13163
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Failed to take all and reasonable measures
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 11/03/2020
hearing_title: Westport TC 6 March 2020 - R 4 - Chair, Mr D Anderson
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 4 an Information was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr Williams alleging a breach of Rule 870(1) by Junior Driver Miss S Diamant. The information alleged; “S Diamant (SHPEEDY) allowed her horse to pace for a distance after 100 metres and in doing so she failed to take all reasonable steps to return the horse to its proper gait at the earliest opportunity”.
Miss Diamant signed the information admitting the breach and stated she was conversant with the Rule.
Rule 870 provides as follows:
(1) When any horse breaks from its gait in any race its driver shall immediately take all reasonable steps to return it to its proper gait and where clearance exists immediately take such horse clear of the field.
Mr Williams with assistance of Mr Renault identified Miss Diamant (SHPEEDY) gallop for a few strides at the start of the race and then trot for approximately 100 metres. Mr Renault then pointed to the horse switch into a pace and Miss Diamant looked downwards immediately.
He stated it appeared Miss Diamant was aware of the change in gait but then showed how she continued on for approximately 450 metres before her horse became unbalanced and galloped. Mr Williams said the concern was that although Miss Diamant realised something was wrong, she continued on chasing the field.
Miss Diamant said she was unsure whether she was in a pace and was fooled by the smooth transition the horse had made.
Mr Thornley stated it was only Miss Diamant’s third drive on a trotter. He said SHPEEDY appears to be an expert at switching gait and could have fooled many more experienced drivers.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
The charge was found proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Williams alluded to the Penalty Guidelines and that Miss Diamant has had only 10 drives during this current season. He said the Stewards saw a fine of no less than $250 as appropriate under the circumstances.
Mr Thornley and Miss Diamant had no submissions to make on Penalty.
reasonsforpenalty:
The JCA Penalty Guide provides an 8-drive suspension or a $400 fine as a starting point for a breach of this rule.
The Committee agree a fine is appropriate and although Miss Diamant had driven her horse for a considerable distance in the wrong gait, which may be seen as an aggravating factor, we have consideration for Miss Diamant's status as a Junior Driver and her lack of experience and her minimal exposure to driving trotters.
The mitigating factors are Miss Diamant’s clear record and admission.
Considering all the above factors the Committee find a $250 fine is an appropriate penalty in this case.
penalty:
Accordingly, Miss Diamant is fined $250.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 870(1)
Informant: Mr P Williams - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Miss S Diamant - Junior Driver
Otherperson: Mr C Thornley - Open Driver assisting Miss Diamant, Mr S Renault - Stipendiary Steward
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: 4c3363ea3738cfc2fc7ce202d67d3a29
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R 4
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: fb5826882fa88ae5a4c62c8590d93219
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 06/03/2020
meet_title: Westport TC - 6 March 2020
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: westport-tc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: DAnderson
meet_pm1: RMcKenzie
meet_pm2: none
name: Westport TC