New Penalties In Final Count Case

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31080, 8 June 1966, Page 4

New Penalties In Final Count Case

Terms of disqualification of six months imposed on T. W. Husband, of Christchurch, and H. R. Henderson, of Chertsey, were reduced to three months by appeal judges appointed by the New Zealand Trotting Conference at a hearing in Christchurch yesterday. Husband and Henderson were found guilty of failing to take proper precautions to prevent a drug being administered to the horse, Final Count, before he won a race at the Nelson Trotting Club’s meeting on January 31. A swab taken from Final Count after the race returned a positive test.

At the initial inquiry Husband and Henderson were disqualified for six months and fines of £25 were imposed. The horse was not disqualified from the race. The appeal judges were Mr P. G. Harkness (chairman), of Hamilton, Mr W. M. Bolt, of Wellington, and Dr. B. W. Nixon, of Greymouth.

Henderson was represented by Mr P. G. S. Penlington, Husband by Mr J. G. Leggat, and the conference' by Mr B. McLelland.

The appellants claimed that the judicial committee was wrong in that theobromine was not a drug, stimulant or depressant capable of affecting the speed, stamina, courtage or conduct of Final Count; that they took all reasonable precautions to prevent a drug being administered to the horse; and that the imposition of a period of disqualification of six months was manifestly excessive having regard to all the circumstances of the case.

The appeal judges in their finding said that Husband and Henderson were correctly found guilty and the convictions were confirmed.

They found that the penalty was excessive and it was reduced in both cases by the imposition of a disqualification for three months from April 28, 1966. The imposition of a fine of £25 in each case was confirmed. As the . appeals were to some extent successful, the appeal judges directed that the deposit fees of £2O be refunded to each appellant. No order was made as to costs.

The appeal judges also said that they considered they had no jurisdiction under the rules to reconsider the question of disqualification of Final Count in respect of the race.

“The drug, theobromine, is a drug within the meaning of Rule 73 of the Rules of Trotting. “We adopt the decision of Mr Justice Shorland in the Ivan John Tucker case that, under the rule in question, whether the rule is breached is based on the quality of the drug or stimulant and not on the quantity administered.” The finding concludes: “This committee recommends to the conference that the rules should be amended to provide that upon an appeal under Section 363 and the following rules and sequence, all questions determined by the judicial committee against whose decision the appeal was brought should be open for review and not only the specific parts of the decision appealed against.”