HISA

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. Among this week's rulings, trainer Steve Klesaris has been suspended for 15 days and fined $1,000 due to his trainee, She's Awesome, testing positive for gabapentin after winning at Aqueduct Nov. 19 last year. Gabapentin is a class B controlled medication under HISA that is an FDA human-approved anticonvulsant used to treat conditions like epilepsy, postherpetic neuralgia and in the treatment of partial onset seizures. Klesaris told the internal adjudication panel...

A federal judge in Oklahoma on Thursday denied a request for a temporary restraining order (TRO) that eight licensed Remington Park horsepeople wanted put in place to keep the Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act (HISA) from being enforced in that state. Chief Judge Timothy DeGiusti of United States District Court of Oklahoma (Western District) wrote in an Aug. 8 order that, "the Court finds that Plaintiffs have failed to make a sufficient showing of irreparable harm to warrant the extraordinary remedy of injunctive relief, [and that] the imminent threat of...

Though officials within the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority have already made huge strides forward in terms of across-the-board equine safety standards, one ongoing concern among stakeholders is that when it comes to the enforcement arm of the national program, an inflexibility in the way some cases are handled and sanctions meted out means the penalties don't always fit the crime. To discuss these concerns, the TDN recently spoke with Alan Foreman, chief executive officer of the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and national ombudsman on behalf of HISA and...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA)-related rulings from around the country. NEW HISA/HIWU STEWARDS RULINGS The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the HIWU "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 08/06/2024 Licensee: Saul Morales, trainer Penalty: A fine of $3,000. Admission. Explainer: Intra-articular injection within 7 days of a timed and reported workout on the horse Condemnation.   Date: 08/05/2024 Licensee: Rodolfo Sanchez-Salomon, trainer Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning...

Just last week, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority released its latest safety figures, showing a four-quarter consecutive decline in equine fatalities. Indeed, in the second quarter of this year, tracks operating under HISA reported 0.76 racing-related equine fatalities per 1,000 starts--significantly lower than the perennial national average. But on the flip side of these statistics is an ongoing concern among stakeholders that the enforcement arm of the national program is in certain areas proving too onerous, and that the penalties aren't always an appropriate response to the...

Ahead of a Wednesday federal court hearing to determine if a temporary injunction is warranted in Oklahoma to keep the Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act (HISA) from being enforced in that state, the HISA Authority filed a legal response Monday that stated "there is no emergency" that would merit such action. The Authority further told the court that the eight licensed Remington Park horsepeople who are plaintiffs in the case are engaging in "foot-dragging and gamesmanship" in their repeated efforts to derail HISA on the grounds of alleged unconstitutionality. In...

A federal judge on Aug. 1 refused to grant an "emergency" request for a temporary restraining order that eight licensed racetrackers in Oklahoma requested on July 29 to keep the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) from being enforced in that state before the Remington Park meet begins there Aug. 16. Chief Judge Timothy DeGiusti of United States District Court of Oklahoma (Western District) wrote in an order issued Thursday that, "Upon review, the Court finds the Application is facially insufficient to satisfy the requirements of Rule 65(b)(1) for issuance...

As it has in virtually every conversation that involves horse racing over the past year, safety played a central role at the 72nd annual Jockey Club Round Table Conference in Saratoga Springs, New York Thursday.   California: Safety and Collaboration In two presentations focusing on California, Gary Fenton, Chairman of the Thoroughbred Owners of California and a managing partner of Little Red Feather Racing, spoke from a TVG set in the Del Mar paddock about the importance of California racing to the overall racing ecosystem, while Dionne Benson, the Chief...

A federal judge cancelled a July 31 hearing in a lawsuit filed last week by eight Oklahoma horsemen who are trying to get the Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act (HISA) declared unconstitutional after learning that seven of the same plaintiffs last year filed a substantially similar complaint but voluntarily withdrew it three months later. The judge in the newer case, Charles Goodwin of United States District Court of Oklahoma (Western District), also signed a July 30 court order reassigning the lawsuit to Chief Judge Timothy DeGiusti, the same federal judge...

For the second time in five days-and for the seventh time in three years-individuals or entities under the control of the Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act (HISA) have filed a lawsuit in a federal court alleging that the law and its enforcement are unconstitutional. This latest legal action took the form of a July 29 complaint in United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa (Central Division) filed by Thoroughbred owner Joseph A. Kelly and owner/trainer Douglas L. Anderson against the HISA Authority, the Federal Trade Commission, and...

When a Bill Mott-trained horse named Authorize (Curlin) broke down and had to be euthanized after an Apr. 26 race at Aqueduct, the trainer thought the worst was over with. Having a horse break down is excruciating for any trainer, but Mott was ready to move on. Little did he know that his problems were just beginning. Tests were performed on Authorize and they showed that he was positive for the painkiller Flunixin, also known as banamine. Mott was incredulous. He did his own internal review, checking with vets, his...

At the National HBPA Conference held at Prairie Meadows, Dr. Doug Daniels, a horse owner and equine veterinarian in Virginia, was re-elected by unanimous acclamation for a second three-year term as the president and chairman of the board, the organization said in a press release on Saturday. "There was a lot more to do these last three years than I ever dreamt," Daniels said. "I hope now, in the next three years, it will be a lot less contentious and a lot more meaningful from the standpoint of our horsemen...