The Windsor Star has reported that on Thursday, August 15 in Superior Court, trainer Derek Riesberry was found not guilty on charges of fraud and cheating at play.
The report states that the proceeding was the first criminal trial in Canada regarding allegations of horse doping.
According to the report, Superior Court Justice Steve Rogin 'couldn’t find that the public was either cheated or defrauded by the action.' The article states that the 'action' was a Riesberry-trained horse being injected with performance-enhancing drugs.
“If anyone was at risk of deception it was the other participants in the race,” Rogin was quoted as saying in The Windsor Star report. “I can’t find the connection between Riesberry’s deception and the public’s deception.”
The article also contains the following paragraph: 'Drawing on numerous precedents on either side of the border, Rogin essentially ruled bettors are observers and not participants in horse races. Therefore, Riesberry’s action didn’t fit the strict definition of the charges under Canadian Criminal Code.'
(With files from The Windsor Star)