Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Dates: 02/04/2026 Licensee: Johanna Urieta, trainer Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on February 5, 2026; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Among this week's rulings, trainer Angel Sanchez Pinero has been banned a combined eight years and fined a total $90,000 (as well as arbitration costs) for a series of medication violations stemming from 2024 onwards. These penalties come in the wake of a two-year suspension...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Dates: 12/04/2025 Licensee: Michael Catalano, trainer Penalty: A fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission. Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Mr Sandman on 10/24/25. Pending ADMC Violations 12/10/2025, Carlos Martin, trainer: Pending...

A Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) internal adjudication panel has banned trainer Zvi Kriple for two years for breach of the racetrack safety rule that prohibits "the deprivation of necessary care, sustenance, shelter, or veterinary care" to a Covered Horse. The case concerns the former Kriple trainee, Royal Honey (Astern {Aus}). In April of this year, Royal Honey died a "very painful death" from colic when stabled at Belterra Park after Kriple failed to secure for the 5-year-old mare the necessary veterinary care, according to a written ruling dated...

Every week, the TDN posts a round-up of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Among this week's rulings, trainer Juan Munoz Cano has been suspended a combined 12 years and a combined $150,000 (including arbitration costs) for a series of clenbuterol positives spanning the end of last year and earlier this year, according to a final decision by an...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 08/18/2025 Licensee: Anna Meah, trainer Penalty: A written Reprimand (per 9/26/23 HISA Guidance). Admission. Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Omeprazole (Gastrogard)—a Class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Trouble Ahead on 7/9/25. Date: 08/15/2025 Licensee: Agustin Gonzalez Jr., trainer Penalty: 7-day...

Thistledown Racino's firing this week of track superintendent Sean Wright followed reports of alleged safety issues with the track's one-mile dirt surface that led to lost days of training and racing. There have also been multiple racing and training equine fatalities since the meet began Apr. 21. The ongoing autopsy on these events has raised compliance question marks (both at Thistledown and nationally) over a key component of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act's (HISA) racetrack safety program. Under this program, tracks are required when operating a meet to submit...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 07/18/2025 Licensee: Joseph David Perez, trainer Penalty: A fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission. Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Phenylbutazone—a class C controlled substance—in a sample taken from Digits on 6/15/25. Date: 07/17/2025 Licensee: Arthur Agostini, trainer Penalty: Disqualification...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 07/08/2025 Licensee: John E. Salzman, trainer Penalty: Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Final decision by HIWU. Explainer: Medication violation...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 04/08/2025 Licensee: Cathal Lynch, trainer Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on April 9, 2025; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 02/25/2025 Licensee: William Blair, trainer Penalty: A fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission. Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Triamcinolone—Controlled Medication (Class C)—in a sample taken from Dot on 1/19/25. Date: 02/25/2025 Licensee: Dr. Larry...

Damon Thayer, who recently completed a 22-year tenure in the Kentucky State Senate, delivered the keynote address Tuesday at the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association Convention in Safety Harbor, Florida. With a theme of "cooperation is always better than extinction," Thayer's 35-minute address focused on the importance of horsemen in every racing jurisdiction building relationships with their state legislators. "It's mind-boggling what a legislator has to absorb every day, and if an industry isn't aligned, the easiest thing for a legislator to do is to wash their hands of...