Texas Racing Commission stewards heard jockey Roman Chapa's appeal Monday of a summary suspension and are expected to issue a ruling this week.
Chapa was suspended on Jan. 19 while the commission investigates allegations that he used an electrical device on a horse in a stakes race at Sam Houston Race Park Jan. 17. The State of Texas has taken legal action against the veteran jockey and has charged him with a felony, unlawful influence on racing. He posted a $10,000 bond, appeared in Harris County District Court on Feb. 6 and the case was reset to Mar. 18.
The suspension has prevented Chapa from riding for two weeks and he sought to have that ban stayed during the appeal hearing. Texas Racing Commission spokesman Robert Elrod said that Chapa and his attorney spoke with the stewards by phone. Elrod said the hearing lasted between 90 minutes and two hours and that the stewards would rule on the appeal within a day or two.
Chapa, 43, piloted Quiet Acceleration to victory in the $50,000 Richard King H. A photograph taken by the track photographer of the final stages of the race appears to show an object in Chapa's left hand as he grips the reins. Jeffrey Green of the Texas Department of Public Safety conducted an investigation and filed a probable cause statement that led to an arrest warrant being issued for Chapa. In his report, Green said that track photographer Jack Coady told him that he had been contacted Jan. 18 by Chapa, who asked him to take the photo off the track's website. Green said in his statement that Chapa told him that the image had been photo-shopped and someone was trying to frame him.
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