Anthony Williams

The appellant, a licensed driver/trainer/owner, appealed against rulings imposing a fine, suspension, and probation after a horse he trained tested positive for codeine and morphine.

The parties reached an agreed statement of facts and a joint submission on disposition.

The appeals against the rulings were withdrawn, and the penalty was varied on consent to a 12-month suspension (6 months stayed), a $10,000 fine ($5,000 stayed), and two years of probation with conditions.

The appellant, a long-time racing official, appealed the Director's decision to deny his request for a conditional licence pending an ongoing investigation into his conduct as Clerk of the Scales.

The appellant had initially refused to cooperate with investigators but later complied.

The Ontario Racing Commission upheld the Director's decision, finding that the ongoing investigation into safety and potential improprieties was conducted in good faith and that denying the conditional licence was in the public interest.

The Commission also found that the appeal was not frivolous and declined to impose a penalty.

The appellant, a standardbred racehorse trainer, appealed a ruling imposing a $500 fine and a 7-day suspension after his horse tested positive for furosemide above the permitted limit.

The appellant argued the testing process was unreliable, the horse was an outlier, he exercised due diligence, and the penalty was too severe.

The Ontario Racing Commission dismissed the appeal, finding the testing process reliable and insufficient evidence to prove the horse was an outlier.

The panel also found the appellant failed to establish a due diligence defence, as no acceptable explanation for the positive test was provided.

The penalty was confirmed as fair and proportionate.

The appellant appealed a 10-day suspension ordered by the judges at Western Fair Raceway for a violation of the Rules of Standardbred Racing.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel varied the start date of the suspension from December 2015 to June 2013 to conform with a prior amended ruling.

The appellant, a licensed standardbred trainer, appealed the penalties imposed by track judges after three of his horses tested positive for the Class II drug Yohimbine within a ten-day period.

The appellant had unknowingly administered the drug via an unlabeled supplement purchased from an unlicensed vendor.

The track judges originally imposed $20,000 in fines, 3 years of suspensions, and 2 years of probation.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel found that while the appellant failed to exercise due diligence, he did not intend to cheat and had no prior positive tests in 34 years.

The panel allowed the appeal in part, reducing the penalty to a concurrent $5,000 fine, a 1-year suspension (with the remaining 6 months stayed conditionally), and 2 years of probation.

The appellant, a long-time Clerk of the Scales, appealed a ruling that made him ineligible to be licensed as an Association Official until he responded to an Ontario Racing Commission investigator.

The appellant had refused to provide a statement or requested documents during an ongoing investigation into his conduct, citing that his previous license had expired and he had already been interviewed multiple times.

The panel denied the appeal, finding that the Director has the statutory authority under the Racing Commission Act to require information from any person relevant to an investigation, and that the ongoing investigation was conducted properly in the public interest.

The appellant, a licensed standardbred trainer, appealed a penalty imposed by track judges after two horses he trained tested positive for the Class II drug O-Desmethylvenlafaxine.

The appellant admitted the positive tests but argued he was not responsible and had exercised due diligence.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel found the appellant failed to meet the standard of care required by the trainer responsibility rule, noting he took no action despite observing symptoms in the horses and suspecting tampering.

The appeal was denied, and the original penalty of a $7,500 fine, a two-year suspension, and two years of probation was confirmed.

The Northern Horsemen's Association appealed the Ontario Racing Commission's decision to allocate 20 live race dates for Sudbury Downs in 2013, down from 60 days in 2012.

The appellant sought 30 race dates and requested that purse funds be used for track operations.

The Panel dismissed the appeal, finding no cogent and compelling evidence to deviate from the Ontario Racing Program principles.

The Panel held that the new economics of horse racing, including the cancellation of the Slots at Racetrack Program, necessitated the reduction, and that purse funds must be protected for purses in the best interests of racing.

The licensee brought a motion by electronic mail for an adjournment of a hearing scheduled for April 22, 2013.

The Vice Chair of the Ontario Racing Commission granted the adjournment and ordered that the stay of penalty previously granted continue upon the same conditions until the completion of the hearing or further order.

The licensee, a standardbred trainer, appealed a penalty imposed after a horse he trained tested positive for codeine and morphine.

The licensee brought a motion for third-party disclosure from the Canadian Pari-Mutuel Agency regarding the urine collection procedures and records of the Chief Test Inspector.

The Ontario Racing Commission granted the motion, finding a reasonable possibility that the requested information was relevant to advancing a defence or meeting the Administration's case.

The appellant, a standardbred licensee and trainer, appealed a 270-day suspension and $3,000 fine issued after his horse tested positive for the Class II drug Aminorex.

The appellant did not contest the positive test but argued he exercised due diligence.

The Ontario Racing Commission found that the appellant met the standard of reasonable care on a balance of probabilities, noting his security measures, use of a licensed veterinarian, and cooperation.

The appeal was denied, but the penalty was varied: the remaining suspension and fine were stayed, while a two-year probation order continued.

The appellant, a thoroughbred licensee, appealed a ruling imposing a 60-day suspension, a $1,500 fine, and a two-year probation for a positive drug test for Acepromazine.

The appellant initially requested a stay, which was denied, and appealed the denial before withdrawing that appeal.

The Ontario Racing Commission allowed the withdrawal and ordered the appellant to pay $575 in costs.

Subsequently, the Commission heard the main appeal and approved an Agreed Statement of Facts and Joint Submission on Disposition.

The appellant, a licensed horse trainer, appealed a one-year suspension, $5,000 fine, and two years' probation imposed after his horse tested positive for Ethanol, a Class II prohibited substance.

The appellant admitted to injecting the horse with vodka prior to a race to calm it down, but argued he was unaware of a recent notice regarding Ethanol testing and sought a reduced penalty based on a prior case involving procedural irregularities.

The Ontario Racing Commission denied the appeal, finding that Ethanol had been a prohibited substance since 2008, the appellant failed to exercise due diligence by administering an unapproved substance without veterinary advice, and there were no compelling reasons to vary the minimum penalty.