Banned Drug's 'Possession' Focus of Juarez Case

What defines possession of a banned substance was the focus of a Horse Racing Integrity & Welfare Unit case against trainer Eusebio Juarez, who ultimately received a 24-month suspension and $18,000 in fines. Juarez, while working as an assistant to trainer Ingrid Mason at Oaklawn Park, had his truck searched Jan. 29 as part of a compliance inspection. Investigators found two syringes inside the lower console of the truck—a 35 ml hypodermic syringe and a 12 ml hypodermic syringe, both with attached needles covered with caps. The clear liquid in each syringe was later tested and found to be the banned substance diisopropylamine, a drug often used and abused in horse racing and horse endurance sports because it increases oxygen utilization and cortical glucose uptake. After Juarez was notified in April of his anti-doping violation for possessing a banned substance, he responded that he did not "own" the syringes and had no intent of possessing or administering the drug to any horses in his care. The drug was "intended for administration to some injured roosters" owned by a friend and auto mechanic in Hot Springs, Ark., named Luis Terrazas, according to Juarez's response. The trainer also supplied an unnotarized, unsigned letter as an "affidavit" from Terrazas stating he left the syringes in Juarez's truck while it was being repaired and that he intended later that day to treat some animals on his farm. Juarez said he drove to Oaklawn Park not knowing the syringes were in his truck. The case was submitted for a JAMS arbitration hearing with arbitrator David Benck, and a hearing on the merits of the case was conducted Sept. 11. Juarez admitted it was an "absolute rule violation to possess the diisopropylamine" and that he was responsible for conducting an inventory of his truck prior to entering Oaklawn's property. He also claimed he was not at fault or even significantly at fault for syringes placed in his truck without his knowledge. Regarding possession, the Horseracing Integrity & Safety's Authority's Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program (administered by HIWU) identifies three defining circumstances: 1) the act of purchasing a banned substance regardless of whether it is actually delivered, 2) exclusive control of the premises the banned substance is found, and 3) even if there is no exclusive control of the premises, the Covered Person knew of its presence and intended to exercise control of it. Juarez never disputed that the syringes were found in his truck, only that he was not to blame for them being there. Regarding his level of fault, the hearing officer found the trainer did have exclusive control over his truck as he had the keys to the vehicle and demanded to see a search warrant before it was inspected. (HIWU noted a search warrant is not required for a compliance inspection.) Juarez also took no precautions to inspect his vehicle even after it had been used by his wife, his son, and his mechanic, who raised farm animals. The hearing officer found, too, that Juarez's claim of ignorance about the syringes and their content was "unsubstantiated and not credible" because the size and gauge of the needles were too large for use on roosters or other fowl and consistent with those used for intravenous injections in horses. Juarez's 24-month suspension began Oct. 8. He was also fined $10,000 to be paid prior to the end of his ineligibility and must pay an additional $8,000 to cover HIWU's share of the arbitration cost.