23 CAR § 357-507 – Protests

(a) A protest, except a protest involving fraud, may be filed only by the owner, or his or her authorized agent, trainer, or jockey of a horse engaged in the race over which the protest is made, or by a racing official of the race meeting.
(b) A protest involving fraud may be made by any person.
(c)
1. (1) A protest, except a claim growing out of happenings in the running of the race, must be made in writing signed by the complainant and filed with the stewards before the later of:
  1. (A) Twenty-four (24) hours after the race is declared official; or
  2. (B) The published post time in the official racing program for the association’s first race on the next live racing day, if one, during the racing season which includes the race which is the subject of the protest, i.e., so if the race occurs on the last day of the racing season, the protest would have to be made to stewards in writing as set forth above prior to twenty-four (24) hours after the race is declared official.
2. (2) For further example, if the race occurs on a Sunday, and the next live race day during that racing season is the following Thursday, the protest would have to be made to stewards in writing as set forth above prior to the published post time in official racing program for the association’s first race on that Thursday.
3. (3) To merit consideration, any protest over the status of an alleged maiden must be made in writing, signed by the complainant, and filed with the stewards within the time period for protest set forth above in this subsection.
(d)
1. (1) A protest against a horse engaged in a race, and filed with the stewards not fewer than sixty (60) minutes before post time, shall receive immediate consideration.
2. (2) In default of proof within thirty (30) minutes of post time that the horse is qualified to start, the horse may be disqualified from starting.
(e) To merit consideration, a protest against the programmed distance of a race must be made at least thirty (30) minutes before post time for that race, but nothing in this subsection shall affect the rule for races run at a wrong distance as compared with the official program.
(f) To merit consideration, a protest against a horse based on a happening in a race must be made to the stewards before the placing of the horses for that race has been officially confirmed.
(g)
1. (1) Jockeys wishing to claim a foul or otherwise protest a happening in a race must do so by communicating to the outrider as promptly as practical following the running of the race.
2. (2) If the jockey's horse is pulled up prior to reaching the outrider, the jockey must proceed to the outrider in order to request a claim of foul or protest.
3. (3) The outrider must wait for those horses that pass the outrider before they are pulled up, and for the jockeys on horses pulled up prior to reaching the outrider to have had the opportunity to communicate a foul or protest claim to the outrider, before communicating a no-claim/no-protest status to the stewards.
4. (4) If for any reason the outrider is unable to communicate to the stewards, the stewards shall not declare the race official until the jockeys riding the first five (5) horses to finish shall have weighed in.
5. (5) Any jockey who has requested to register a claim of foul or protest also must contact the stewards promptly upon dismounting.
6. (6) If the outrider is not confident regarding the decision to permit the quick official, the outrider shall so notify the stewards and request a hold, and in such event the race shall not be declared official by the stewards until after either:
  1. (A) The outrider shall have subsequently released the hold and notified the stewards of no-claim/no-protest status; or
  2. (B) The jockeys riding the first five (5) horses to finish have been weighed in.
(h) A person or persons lodging a protest must pay all the costs and expenses incurred in determining the objection unless his or her objection is upheld, in which case the cost shall be paid by the offender.
(i) Pending the determination of a protest, any money or prize won by a protested horse, or any other money affected by the outcome of the protest shall be paid to and held by the Racing Secretary until the protest is determined.
(j)
1. (1) If a protest (except for foul riding) against a horse that has won or has been placed is sustained by the stewards, the horse shall be assigned to last position in the race, and the other horses in the race shall be advanced accordingly in the order of their finish.
2. (2)
  1. (A) The stewards are vested with the power to determine the extent of the disqualification in case of fouls.
  2. (B) They may place the offending horse behind such horses as in their judgment it interfered with, or they may place it last.
(k) In the case of a disqualification, the stewards shall immediately make public the reason for the disqualification, and the same shall be announced over the public address system.
(l) A protest may not be withdrawn without permission of the stewards.
(m) No person shall make frivolous protests.
(n) The stewards shall keep a record of all protests and complaints and of any action taken thereon, and shall report both daily to the Arkansas Racing Commission.
(o) If a horse is disqualified for a foul under this part, any other horse in the race owned wholly or in part by the same interest or trained by the same trainer may also be disqualified if the stewards determine the second part of the coupled or uncoupled entry benefitted from the actions of the disqualified stablemate.