RULING NUMBER COM TB 004/2011
COMMISSION HEARING TORONTO, ONTARIO – MAY 16, 2011
IN THE MATTER OF THE RACING COMMISSION ACT S.O. 2000, c.20;
AND IN THE MATTER OF THE REQUEST FOR HEARING
OF THOROUGHBRED LICENSEE TROY HEARN
Thoroughbred licensee Troy Gary Hearn, (“HEARN”), was previously licensed as a jockey, (ORC licence number 106948).
On May 27 2006, HEARN was randomly selected to provide a urine sample at Fort Erie Racetrack.
The sample that HEARN provided on May 27, 2006, was cold and improper. As a result, Ruling Number TB 4223/2006 was issued which suspended HEARN and stated that he would not be considered for reinstatement until he provided a negative sample.
On May 3, 2011, HEARN provided a sample which was confirmed to be negative on May 4, 2011. As a result, a Hearing to determine HEARN’S future status was scheduled for May 16, 2011.
On May 16, 2011, a Panel of the Ontario Racing Commission was convened consisting of Chair Rod Seiling.
Angela Holland appeared as counsel for the Administration. HEARN attended in person and was self-represented.
At the commencement of the Hearing, Ms. Holland advised the Chair that there was an outstanding warrant for HEARN’S arrest issued by the Miami Dade Police Department, and that it was the position of the Administration that the Hearing could not proceed until such time as HEARN had the warrant dealt with as the outstanding warrant prevents him from being licensed.
As a result the Hearing was adjourned, to be rescheduled upon the outstanding warrant for HEARN’S arrest issued by the Miami Dade Police Department being dealt with.
The transcript with the Panel’s Oral Decision is attached to this Ruling.
DATED at Toronto this 23^rd^ day of June 2011.
BY ORDER OF THE COMMISSION
John L. Blakney
Executive Director
ONTARIO RACING COMMISSION
THOROUGHBRED HEARING
IN THE MATTER OF AN APPEAL AND REQUEST FOR HEARING OF
TROY HEARN
Held Before:
Rod Seiling, Chairman
These are the proceedings in the above mentioned matter held before The Ontario Racing Commission, Re: TROY HEARN, taken before Toronto Court Reporters, Suite 1410, 65 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario, at 10 Carlson Court, Suite 400, Toronto, Ontario, on the 16th day of May, 2011.
Appearances:
Angela Holland,
for the Ontario Racing Commission Administration
INDEX OF EXHIBITS
EXHIBIT # PAGE #
Administration book of documents.................................... 7
Administration factum........................................................ 7
report of Lora Deesy.......................................................... 8
Hearing commenced ...
MR. CHAIRMAN: All rise please. Please be seated. This is a hearing of the Ontario Racing Commission under the Racing Commission Act of 2000 in the matter of the appeal and request for hearing by Troy Hearn.
MS. HOLLAND: Good afternoon, Mr. Chair.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Good afternoon, Ms. Holland. How are you today?
MS. HOLLAND: I'm fine, thank you. Just for the record my name is Angela Holland and I am here as counsel for the Administration. To my left is Mr. Troy Hearn and he is here today self represented.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Mr. Hearn, you are aware of your rights to be represented by legal counsel?
MR. HEARN: Pardon?
MR. CHAIRMAN: You are aware of your rights to be represented by legal counsel if you so choose?
MR. HEARN: Okay. Nobody told me anything about that. They just told me to come in by myself.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Would you like an adjournment so you can get legal counsel?
MR. HEARN: Yes, I would please.
MR. CHAIRMAN: You want to adjourn the matter?
MR. HEARN: Well ...
MS. HOLLAND: It's up to you but just for the record I'd like to confirm that it is, I believe it is stated, right in the Notice of Hearing.
MR. CHAIRMAN: It is. It's in the Notice of Hearing so if you read your notice you are aware.
MR. HEARN: Okay, well, I really don't understand the question to be honest with you.
MR. CHAIRMAN: You don't understand it? Okay. Let's start again.
MR. HEARN: All right.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Under the Rules of Procedure for the Ontario Racing Commission when you make an appeal.
MR. HEARN: Yes, sir.
MR. CHAIRMAN: One of your rights is to hire a lawyer.
MR. HEARN: Okay.
MR. CHAIRMAN: You are here self represented and that fact is stated right on your notice.
MR. HEARN: I - nobody ever sent me any of these. I gave them an address to send it to. I never got this. Nobody told me of I wanted to. I spoke to ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: Well, hold it now. Let's just stop for a minute. You got the Notice of Appeal, right?
MR. HEARN: Yes and I spoke to Ms. Angela ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: Well, hold it. You have got the notice. You received the Notice of Appeal?
MR. HEARN: What, the papers and stuff? Nothing, no. I just got it.
MR. CHAIRMAN: No, you received - you would have gotten a notice informing you of this date.
MR. HEARN: Yes, that's this. Yes, of course, on the phone, yes.
MR. CHAIRMAN: On that document as I recall there would be something about your right to have legal counsel.
MR. HEARN: Well, who I talked to on the phone they didn't tell me anything.
MR. CHAIRMAN: No, sir. It is written on the piece of paper that you received. Let's go to that.
MS. HOLLAND: That's, Mr. Chair, at tab 11 of the book of documents. That's where the Notice of Hearing is.
MR. CHAIRMAN: If you take a look at the third paragraph. Go to tab 11. I'm going to read it: "And further take notice that Troy Hearn is entitled to be represented by counsel or an agent, call witnesses, to cross-examine witnesses and make submissions to the Ontario Racing Commission". Do you see that?
MR. HEARN: Okay, now. Yes, now I understand.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Sir, you are aware of your rights.
MR. HEARN: Yes, okay.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Do you want to represent yourself?
MR. HEARN: Yes, yes. Yes, I do.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Why don't we do some housekeeping here. We have got two pieces of paper here. Mr. Hearn, you have copies of both? You have the book of documents and the factum?
MR. HEARN: Yes, sir.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Do you have any objection to them going in as exhibits?
MS. HOLLAND: You have to answer yes or no.
MR. HEARN: Yes.
MS. HOLLAND: Is it okay that they get entered?
MR. HEARN: Of course, whatever it takes.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Okay, the book of documents will be Exhibit 1. Your factum will be Exhibit 2.
EXHIBIT NO. 1: Administration book of documents.
EXHIBIT NO. 2: Administration factum.
MS. HOLLAND: I'd also like to make the report of Investigator Lora Deesy dated May 9th, 2011 ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: I'm sorry, I don't have that. Do you have an extra copy?
MS. HOLLAND: I do, sir.
MR. CHAIRMAN: That will be Exhibit 3.
EXHIBIT NO. 3: report of Lora Deesy.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Do you have a copy of that, sir?
MR. HEARN: It's in this one here?
MR. CHAIRMAN: Okay.
MS. HOLLAND: Mr. Chair, perhaps before I move on I'd just like to confirm my understanding is that Mr. Hearn has spoken with Robbie King of the Jockey's Association with respect to representation so my understanding is that he was aware of his ability to have Mr. King attend with him.
MR. HEARN: Yes. He told me he was going to be here. I talked to him Sunday or last Saturday at racing to tell him exactly what happened and he told me would but obviously he isn't.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Do you want to proceed?
MR. HEARN: Yes, I do because I need to go back and ride horses again.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Okay.
MS. HOLLAND: Mr. Chair, we are here to determine the future status of Mr. Troy Hearn ORC license number 106948 who provided a cold improper urine sample at Fort Erie on May 27th, 2006 in violation of the Rules of Thoroughbred Racing and as a result of this he was subsequently suspended and not available for reinstatement until he provided a negative sample. He has since provided a negative sample. However, it came to my attention last week that Mr. Hearn currently has an outstanding warrant for his arrest issued by the Miami Dade Police Department. It is the position of the Administration that we cannot proceed with the hearing until such time as Mr. Hearn has had the warrant taken care of because he cannot be licensed in the face of the outstanding warrant. And just for the record the outstanding warrant is confirmed in the report of Investigator Lora Deesy which has been made Exhibit 3.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Okay.
MS. HOLLAND: I am prepared to proceed with the hearing should you desire.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Well, let's make the ruling on this first. Mr. Hearn, do you want to come up to the - okay you heard - just to help you, you heard Ms. Holland state that as long as this outstanding warrant is there against you that she can't proceed, we can't hold the hearing.
MR. HEARN: I mean in that case I mean I - it had nothing to do - I can explain to you the situation. I'm basically stuck in quick sand. I can't get out because I bought a car 2009 for my girlfriend in my girlfriend's name Kelly Murray and I got pulled over because of a cracked windshield and in a parking lot. Now I bought it from a jockey down there, okay? And what happened was that it was a second hand car and the vintage tag was stolen. There were no reports of a stolen car or anything. Automatically they have to take me in because the vintage tag was stolen but there was no reports of any stolen car. I went to jail in Miami Dade County which is one of the worst because I didn't have money for bail or anything, no family down there. Okay, I did my time, I went to programs for them until it came to a point I lost all my identification and I had to come back to Canada. The Canadian Immigration over there paid for my ticket to come back to Canada. When I came back to Canada and got all my I.D. settled I tried to go back to the United States to fix my problem. They would not let me inside the United States because of this warrant. They said I have to clear it. Now I have a lawyer working on it down there Mr. Joshua Cooley. I have a case number right here and everything. It is just I can't go back to the United States. I mean it was just a - like wrong place wrong time. My mother told me to come here and speak the truth and that's the truth. I got stopped in a parking lot, you know, for a cracked windshield. The car wasn't under my name or anything.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Well, I understand that circumstances may be ‑‑
MR. HEARN: That's my first offence in my whole life. I'm not a criminal, you know. I've been up here three weeks now. I came in with a little money to buy my equipment and stuff. Now the money I was supposed to buy my equipment I'm using for groceries and there is a little room I'm renting. You know three weeks. They asked me to provide them money and I provided the little money had to take the sample for them and on Friday they called me and tell me that Monday I have this court thing that has to do with the United States, you know.
MR. CHAIRMAN: But Mr. Hearn, the problem I am faced with is Ms. Holland is correct that with an outstanding warrant you are not licensable under the Ontario Racing Commission rules.
MR. HEARN: Even if it is in another - I mean I guess I have no ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: It is an understanding. We have reciprocal agreements.
MR. HEARN: Yes, I understand. It's ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: And so all I can tell you is that you need to get in touch with your American lawyer and get this cleaned up asap and then come back.
MR. HEARN: I mean they cut my phone off on Friday. I can't even call or anything. Like I say, the only work I have left to save my to buy a thing and call him or whatever is for me to get back on the track and ride. You know, like this is my first offence. I've never - I apologize for the situation back in 2006, you know but I mean that was almost six years ago. I had my test negative. You know I'm clean. I don't even drink. I go to the gym twice a day. You know, I eat properly. I'm on a proper diet. I eat four meals a day, you know, and I'm just trying. I have a five year old. You know I left Montreal and my little one you know to come up here to try to get a second chance in life and this thing comes up which I just got stopped for something that I didn't do and I did my time, a week in Miami, you know.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Any suggestions, Ms. Holland?
MS. HOLLAND: Well, I feel for him, Mr. Chair but unfortunately until the warrant is taken care of or we get some sort of documentation from the Miami Dade Police Department saying that the warrant is no longer in affect.
MR. HEARN: I mean I don't even have money to go there to turn myself in, to come back or else I would have done that.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Well, maybe Mr. King could help you.
MR. HEARN: I mean ...
MR. CHAIRMAN: We are kind of stuck.
MR. HEARN: I don't want to ask anybody for anything anyways but I know what I could do is probably call my brother and I mean I have the case number, I have the number for the lawyer. I was supposed to call him right now at the same time I have this court thing is when I was supposed to call him and I don't know, I just need some kind of advice what to do, you know, what I can do at least for something temporarily to come back and ride. Maybe from him, I don't know. I'm ADD. I really don't know how - as you see, you ask me questions and I am not really too focused, you know. And I just need some advice if I can from the Ontario Racing Commission to help me get through this, you know.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Well, the advice, the only advice, that we can give you is ‑‑
MR. HEARN: I'll take it, yes.
MR. CHAIRMAN: ‑‑ is to get your warrant cleared up because until such time we are powerless to do anything. We can't give you a licence with an outstanding warrant against you. We can't even consider it. I'm sorry about that but ‑‑
MR. HEARN: I understand.
MR. CHAIRMAN: ‑‑ but I feel for you but our rules don't allow consideration.
MR. HEARN: I understand that. Is it possible if like if I call my lawyer and he can fax up something like stating that he could find another court date for me? Is it possible until he finds a court date I could be temporarily ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: I can't give you a temporary licence. You need to get a piece of documentation to Ms. Holland that gives her some comfort that this matter has been rectified.
MS. HOLLAND: Not even that it is just being dealt with. I would need some sort of finality.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Yes, there has to be finality. Just that you have a hearing date scheduled down there doesn't do us any good. Until the warrant is dealt with ‑‑
MR. HEARN: I don't know how I'm going to do that because I can't go to the United States.
MR. CHAIRMAN: But if what you tell us is true and ‑‑
MR. HEARN: I hope that ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: Sir, it is not me that you have to convince now. It is somebody in Miami Dade and if you have got the documentation to be able to prove your story then one would think that your lawyer is going to be able to clean it up and clear it up for you.
MR. HEARN: Okay, so I will ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: But until - you need to get that done first.
MR. HEARN: So then ‑‑
MR. CHAIRMAN: And we can reschedule a hearing for you, sir.
MR. HEARN: Okay.
MR. CHAIRMAN: But until you get that cleaned up we simply can't consider it.
MR. HEARN: I understand.
MR. CHAIRMAN: Okay, thank you.
MR. HEARN: Thanks a lot. Thank you.
CERTIFIED CORRECT _________________________________
RAYMOND P. MACDONALD, B.A., CVR
Commissioner of Oaths