A New York appellate court has ruled Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher will not be allowed to reargue or appeal its unanimous ruling affirming a 10-day suspension imposed on the trainer by New York stewards.
The order, entered by the Appellate Division, Third Department, of the New York Supreme Court and made public June 23, appears to put a stamp of finality on Pletcher's legal case after Pletcher asked to once again argue his position to the Appellate Division and to file an appeal with the New York Court of Appeals.
The decision is the culmination of then-2-year-old Forte testing positive for meloxicam, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory, at the New York Drug Testing and Research Program after he won the 2022 running of the Hopeful Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course.
Split samples sent to the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory confirmed the presence of meloxicam in postrace samples.
Previous reporting indicates Pletcher began serving the suspension June 18. This weekend, horses from his barn are entered at Churchill Downs and Aqueduct Racetrack under the names of two assistant trainers, Anthony Sciametta Jr. and Steven Hampson.
Pletcher's case commenced before the effective date rule-making and enforcement powers transitioned to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority from state jurisdictions. Under the new system, assistant trainers are not allowed to enter races in place of a suspended trainer.
