Franklin County Circuit Judge Thomas Wingate has denied a motion for a temporary injunction by the Kentucky Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (KHBPA) in its case against the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, Keeneland, and Churchill Downs. Judge Wingate also granted a motion from the defendants to dismiss the case for lack of standing.
“It must be emphasized that the Court is not determining whether Lasix should be provided on race day to horses,” read an order filed by Wingate on Monday. “Ethical and medical debates on the administration of Lasix on race day to Thoroughbreds are beyond the scope of this litigation. Instead, the Court is solely focused on its task of interpreting the relevant law to ensure that the actions of Defendants do not exceed the permissible bounds.”
Wingate went on to explain that for a motion for temporary injunction to be granted, the party requesting must show irreparable injuries when no other remedy is available to that party, which he did not believe was the case here. Further, Wingate stated that because Kentucky regulations allowed one of two Lasix administration timeframes to be permitted — either 24 hours pre-race or four hours pre-race — that the commission was not, as the KHBPA argued, delegating its authority on drug administration over to the racetracks.
“In April of 2019, Keeneland and Churchill publicly announced their intention to eliminate race day use of Lasix in 2-year-old horses,” read the order. “Owners, trainers and horses have spent the previous year planning for Lasix-free races. Ultimately, the Court agrees with Defendants that injunction relief would cause detriment to the public interest, harm Defendants, and not maintain the status quo.”
Further, Wingate wrote that the KHBPA did not have legal standing because, in part, it could not disclose one member who was injured by the Defendants’ actions.
Language approved by the KHRC to partially phase out Lasix beginning with 2-year-old races in 2020 is still awaiting the last steps in the legislative process to become law.
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