Preciado Sues to Regain 'Constitutional' Rights to Enter at Parx

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Ramon Preciado, who has been at or near the top of the Parx training standings for the past seven years but is currently appealing several suspensions for equine drug violations, is suing both the Parx director of racing and the executive secretary of the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission (PHRC) in an effort to regain what he claims are his “Constitutionally protected” rights to enter horses while his appeals are adjudicated via due process.

Preciado's civil suit, filed Apr. 26 in United States District Court, Middle District of Pennsylvania, seeks unspecified monetary damages for allegedly “destroying” his business and reputation as a trainer, plus attorney fees, punitive damages, and “other relief as the court deems proper.”

The plaintiff also asks for a declaratory judgment of whether Parx's refusal to accept entries qualifies as a “constructive ejection” being carried out despite the fact that both an appeal hearing and a supersedeas (which suspends a penalty until final judgment) have been granted by the PHRC. In addition, Preciado is requesting that a temporary restraining order be served to allow him to resume entering horses while his chain of appeals plays out.

Sam Elliott is the Parx official named as one defendant. Walter Remmert of the PHRC is the other. Neither responded to Wednesday voicemail messages requesting comment in time for deadline for this story.

“This has been devastating to Preciado's business, causing him irreparable harm that is unlikely to be reversed,” Preciado's attorney, Alan Pincus, wrote in the 10-page complaint. “The sole cause of this irreparable harm is the refusal of Elliott to accept the entries of Preciado's horses and Remmert's refusal to order Elliott to accept the entries pending the result of Preciado's hearing.”

Over the past few months, Preciado has been fined and suspended by both the Delaware Racing Commission (21 days) and PHRC (270 days) for a series of clenbuterol positives that occurred in 2015. Clenbuterol is a bronchodilator that is known to have steroidal properties and is regulated as Class 3 drug by the Association of Racing Commissioners International. Preciado's appeal of the Delaware suspensions did not result in the penalties being overturned; the overages that allegedly occurred at Parx are currently under appeal.

“Preciado contends and will prove at the hearings that a disgruntled employee has sabotaged his horses by giving the drug without this knowledge,” the civil complaint contends prior to outlining the plaintiff's version of what transpired over the last 12 days.

On Apr. 15, according to the complaint, Parx served Preciado with a formal ejection notice for a period of three years. The notice, filed as evidence in the suit, cites the Parx and Delaware Park drug overages and gives as a reason for the ejection that “Your pattern of conduct is not in the best interest of racing and you are an 'undesirable' person.”

On Apr. 18, Preciado was granted an appeal of that ejection from Parx by the PHRC. The complaint alleges that he tried to enter horses on Apr. 19 but was barred from doing so by Elliott.

On Apr. 20, Preciado requested that Remmert order Parx to accept his entries in light of the commission's granting of the supersedeas. But Remmert allegedly declined to order Parx to take his entries because “refusal to accept entries is not part of the ejection.”

Preciado disagreed. In the complaint, Pincus wrote that “refusal to accept entries is a constructive ejection in itself…The ability to enter and race horses is the single most essential element of a trainer's license…If a track can simply refuse entries without due process the Commission would be giving the track veto power over the licensing process and render a trainer's license meaningless… Elliott's unlawful actions were knowing and intentional and done with malice…Remmert encouraged and put the weight of the state behind Elliott's action.”

This led to the federal lawsuit, which will hinge on whether the actions of Parx and the PHRC are violations of due process under 42 U.S.C. 1983. In essence, Preciado will need to prove that he has been deprived of his Constitutionally protected property interests (the right to utilize his license as a Thoroughbred horse trainer) and his Constitutionally protected liberty rights (the alleged damaging of his reputation as a horse trainer).

Complicating matters further is a current quarantine of horses at Parx for equine herpesvirus. This means Preciado can't ship his horses to another track to race until the quarantine is lifted. Because of this, the complaint states that owners have transferred 43 of 57 horses in Preciado's stable to other trainers who are eligible to enter at Parx.

“An ejection is devastating to a trainer,” Pincus wrote. “The trainer usually has the choice of either removing his horses from the grounds hoping to find stall space at another facility… Because of the unique facts of this case Preciado's only chance to save his horses was to obtain the supersedeas which was granted by Remmert. However, unless Remmert orders Parx to accept Preciado's entries the supersedeas is useless and Preciado's career is ruined.” –@thorntontd

 

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