Jockey Oisin Murphy has been fined £70,000 and banned from driving for 20 months after pleading guilty to driving over the limit for alcohol.
In response to the guilty plea, the British Horseracing Authority said the rider's behavior "fell a long way short of the standard we expect of all licensed individuals" and that new conditions would be placed on his license. However, he would remain free to continue riding.
Murphy, 29, appeared at Reading Magistrates' Court July 3 after being charged last week following a single-vehicle accident in April when the car he was driving left the road and collided with a tree.
Police described the four-time champion jockey as appearing to be intoxicated at the scene of the accident, while a female passenger, who owned the car, was on the ground. The prosecution stated Murphy was on the phone to his cousin when the police arrived.
Having been taken to hospital, Murphy was subsequently tested at a police station at 7a.m. where he was found to have 66 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood in his system, which was described as being "just below twice over the legal limit." The prosecution recorded the last time he was in control of the vehicle as 12:15 a.m.
During Thursday's hearing, the prosecution stated Murphy had told police during his interview that he was tired and that he did not have any memory of the accident.
Murphy, who spoke to confirm his name, date of birth, address, and enter a guilty plea, apologized via his barrister Alex Di Francesco KC before the verdict was delivered.
"Mr. Murphy accepts that he made a great error on his part and is remorseful," Di Francesco said. "He wants to make three apologies: firstly to the passenger and to convey how grateful the circumstances were not worse, he wants to apologize to the public and other road users, and lastly to those who he works with."
Asked about how a sentence would impact his ability to do his job, Murphy's defense stated that anything from the court would not do so, "but it remains an open question due to the regulatory body."
In a statement following the hearing, the BHA said: "Everyone at the BHA, like all involved in our sport, is disappointed today having learned the details of the offense to which Oisin Murphy has pleaded guilty. This is a very serious offense that, in the course of being committed, saw Mr. Murphy jeopardize not only his own safety but that of his passenger and all other people traveling on the roads at the same time as him that night.
"His conduct fell a long way short of the standard we expect of all licensed individuals, in whom we place trust that they will represent our sport to the best of their abilities, upholding our collective reputation and ensuring racing is a safe place for all.
"In light of Mr. Murphy's guilty plea and the information revealed in court today, we will be working on the addition of new conditions on his license that may be referred to the Licensing Committee for their consideration. As has been the case in recent weeks, Mr. Murphy remains free to take up his riding engagements.
"We will issue an update on this process in due course and will be making no further comment at this time."
The court was told that Murphy earns a regular income of £1,250 a week, along with irregular earnings of £250,000 a year net.
Delivering his judgement, district judge Sam Goozee said: "On April 27 you were behind the wheel when the level of alcohol was nearly twice above the legal limit. I must add that this is the assumed level of alcohol in your blood at the time of driving, but I note the amount of time between the accident and the test taking place.
"You have apologized for letting the public and your colleagues in the racing world down. Usually, with the aggravating factors in this case I would consider this to be serious enough for a community penalty. In this case, I believe this can instead be dealt with via a financial penalty."
Alongside his fine and driving ban, Murphy was ordered to pay a surcharge of £2,000 and costs of £85. The rider will also be required to undertake a drink driving remedial course which, if completed, would reduce the length of his ban. A second charge of failing to provide a sample at the roadside was dropped by the prosecution.
Murphy, who was joined at court by his agent, Jimmy Derham, and his mother Maria, did not speak as he left court.
