Top Irish trainer facing drugs charges

Grey said:
It's weird. The media don't come out of this well.




They surely do, Miesque. Do you know if they've already changed in the UK since Sungate?

By the way what does POM-V mean?
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Yes, uk rules changed/changing to allow for possession of banned substances not on prescription and not kept on the vet med books to be an offence.

Currently, the only thing Fenton has done wrong that can be proven is holding the meds without prescriptions. Unless the horses are/were tested then the HRI cannot say the horses were given any of the substances.
 
Miesque said:
Yes, uk rules changed/changing to allow for possession of banned substances not on prescription and not kept on the vet med books to be an offence.

Currently, the only thing Fenton has done wrong that can be proven is holding the meds without prescriptions. Unless the horses are/were tested then the HRI cannot say the horses were given any of the substances.
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Would the new ruling be applicable as the offence this relates to took place in 2012?
 
Big difference in the races though. Would TTT have been pulled from a Gold Cup as a leading contender if this had happened two years down the line?
 
The BHA have to demand that they are provided with the info from Ireland . I suspect there is a risk for Fenton that they will suspend him from making entries in the UK .
 
Ardross said:
The BHA have to demand that they are provided with the info from Ireland . I suspect there is a risk for Fenton that they will suspend him from making entries in the UK .
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They arguably have no jurisdiction to do that, unless HRI raise the issue, and that's unlikely in the extreme.
 
When the BHA are on the phone maybe they can explain how HRI are expected to believe that al Zarooni acted alone.
 
Ardross said:
The BHA have to demand that they are provided with the info from Ireland . I suspect there is a risk for Fenton that they will suspend him from making entries in the UK .
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From whom should they demand this information? The Irish Minister for Agriculture?

And if they refuse to accept entries for horses from the Fenton stable I suspect they'll find themselves in the High Court facing an injunction from Giggy.
 
It all depends on the BHA rules . What is unclear is whether and how much info has been shared by the prosecuting authorities in Ireland with the Turf Club.

People have short memories . The BHA was successfully able to suspend Fallon et al pending their trial . I have not had the time to read the Rules of Racing but if they have the power to suspend accepting entries from a trainer pending the determination of criminal charges against him that might affect the integrity of their races then I think the High Court would be disinclined to interfere .

The question is do they have that power ?
 
Now I have looked at the rules I think they have . A trainer is only permitted to enter a horse in this country under rule 14.1.12- which counts as a trainer's permit and this may be suspended under Rule 63 .

This seems perfectly appropriate . It must obviously be done rationally and on the basis of evidence .
 
Ardross said:
Now I have looked at the rules I think they have . A trainer is only permitted to enter a horse in this country under rule 14.1.12- which counts as a trainer's permit and this may be suspended under Rule 63 .

This seems perfectly appropriate . It must obviously be done rationally and on the basis of evidence .
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The trouble is that the BHA have already said that they have no information let alone evidence. It would be difficult for the BHA to take any action before the Irish authorities and legal system have dealt with it.
One assumes that the rule applies to declarations as well as entries given that LI is already an accepted entry. To be 'rational' the BHA would have to take immediate action to allow Gigginstown the opportunity to transfer the horse to another trainer and run under his licence. Given the nature of the alleged offence there is no way that action can be aimed at an individual horse so, if Gigginstown stick to their innocent until proved guilty line, LI will surely line up for the Gold Cup if he stays sound.
 
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An extract from Chris Cook's article in today's Guardian, the last paragraph is intriguing:

But pre-Festival action [by the BHA] against Fenton now seems off the cards. The adjournment of his case on Thursday at a court near here [Clonmel] means no evidence will be heard until 20 March at the earliest and probably not until the following month. The Irish Turf Club will do nothing until the court case is concluded and the BHA does not feel it has sufficient grounds to prevent him from having runners in Britain.

A BHA spokesman said it is currently collating the available evidence, particularly with a view to establishing whether any of Fenton's runners at the Festival may have been given a banned substance. In reality, very little evidence of any kind is likely to be available; the prosecution is driven by the Irish Department of Agriculture, which the BHA does not feel it can approach directly.

Instead, the BHA is relying on its counterpart, the Irish Turf Club, to act as a conduit for information. But the Turf Club has itself only learned of Fenton's prosecution in recent weeks and its relationship with the Department has been poor. Information and intelligence does not flow between the two bodies as readily as might be expected.

In any case, the Turf Club is fully engaged on another front, fighting a court case brought by two other trainers who objected to being investigated by it. This case has the capacity to undermine the Turf Club's right to rule over the sport and the hearing has been taking up much of its officials' time this week.
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