Hoosier Park in Indiana is back in action, and so is the pathological abuser Jordan Ross. For those who might need a refresher on Mr. Ross, all this happened last year:
Apr 1: “While driving Fashion Baby, Jordan Ross did cause welts while whipping the horse. Mr. Ross is fined $200.” Then this: “Penalty was mitigated because Mr. Ross was within the IHRC whipping guidelines.”
Jun 3: “While driving The Pantheist A, Jordan Ross did cause welts while whipping the horse.” Fined $300, no suspension – and this was his second offense. And again: “Penalty was mitigated because Mr. Ross was within the whipping guidelines.”
Jun 7 (yes, four days later): “While driving Hallmark Janie, Jordan Ross did cause welts while whipping the horse.” Again: $300 fine, no suspension. And though now his third offense, “penalty was mitigated because Mr. Ross was within the whipping guidelines.”
Jul 14: “While driving Rollinwitdaponyzzz, Jordan Ross did welt the horse. For this violation Mr. Ross is suspended three days. Mr. Ross was also cautioned that any further incident of this type would lead to increased penalties.”
Oct 25: “While driving Straight Denim, Jordan Ross did cause welts while whipping the horse.” $300 fine. “Penalty was mitigated because Mr. Ross was within the whipping guidelines and it had been more than 100 days since his last whipping violation.” “More than 100 days since”? Convenient: The last one had occurred Jul 14 – 102 days prior.
Dec 2: “While driving Flyingsix, Jordan Ross violated the whipping rule by using excessive wrist and elbow action while whipping the horse…. For this violation, Mr. Ross is fined $300 – first offense of the meet of this type. Penalty was aggravated due to Mr. Ross raising his elbow and bringing the whip back behind his head.” “Aggravated” – but no suspension, because it was a different “type” of offense.
Which brings us to the new season.
May 17: “While driving Alwaysonetwomany A, Jordan Ross was found to have welted the horse. For this violation, Mr. Ross is fined $200. Mr. Ross waived his right to a hearing and accepted the penalty [of course he did]. Penalty was mitigated because Mr. Ross was within the IHRC whipping guidelines.”
This makes seven separate incidents of (egregious) horse abuse – six involving welts – at the same track, in a bit over a year – and no end in sight. In light of this, I contacted the Indiana Commission, asking how welts are in any way compatible with the “guidelines” – hell, how this man still has a license. Over two weeks later, I finally received a reply:
Mr. Battuello,
Thank you for your inquiry regarding Jordan Ross and the whipping violations you referred to in your email dated June 3. I apologize for the time it has taken to respond, but I felt that it was important to investigate Mr. Ross’ violation history, speak with the judges, and speak with the regulatory veterinarian to create an informed reply.
In assigning penalties to violations, the judges consider many factors, both mitigating and aggravating. These factors include the violation history by licensee, cooperation by licensee during investigation, reputation of licensee in community, and licensee’s good faith effort to prevent the violation among other mitigating and aggravating factors. I can tell you that when the judges have cited Mr. Ross and stated “Penalty was mitigated because Mr. Ross was within the IHRC whipping guidelines,” this pertains to the fact that the judges have studied tape, have spoken with Mr. Ross, and have spoken with the regulatory veterinarian, and although Mr. Ross has not violated any of the whipping rules, and in fact has made every alteration the judges have requested, welts still appeared.
Mr. Ross is totally cooperative in trying to prevent these welts and for that there has been mitigation in the past. However, as of the latest ruling, Mr. Ross has been informed that the next violation will result in suspended time, regardless of whether he has followed all other whipping rules. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. Thank you.
David Rothenberg
General Counsel
Indiana Horse Racing Commission
Reading between the lines – because they’ve forced me to – they appear to be saying this is not a matter of technique: Ross is not using an “exaggerated motion,” more than “whip and elbow action,” raising his arm too high. So, it’s the force that’s causing the welts. And, at least to the Commission, this somehow mitigates Ross’ culpability. Sick. And don’t you just love the part about “reputation of licensee in community”?
This, of course, is the same feckless, compromised commission that failed to hold Dale Hiteman accountable. In that case, we forced the issue, and both the U.S. Trotting Association and, more important, the Madison County Prosecutor did. Now, we must act again. From the Indiana cruelty statutes:
“Abuse means to knowingly or intentionally beat, torment, injure, or otherwise harm an animal. A person who knowingly or intentionally abuses a vertebrate animal commits cruelty to an animal, a Class A misdemeanor.”
I believe welts qualify as “harm to an animal.” Please engage, respectfully and professionally. The horses, Ross’ past and future victims, desperately need your voice.
Madison County DA: 765-641-9585
Prosecutor Rodney Cummings: rcummings@madisoncounty.in.gov
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Andrew Hanna: ahanna@madisoncounty.in.gov
How has contacting the prosecutor gone? Such an idiotic suggestion to escalate this issue in such a manor. You activists are, pardon the expression, mentally retarded.
Exactly
But wait, I thought the racing industry said that whips do not hurt horses, they are only used as “guides”?
Horses have much thinner skin than humans and many more nerve endings under their skin than we do – it’s why a horse can feel a fly land on him. That being said, the amount of force needed to inflict welts would have to be well above the average – imagine the pain these poor horses feel as they are literally beaten by this sadist.
A corrupt & abusive industry has ” Guidelines”.
The fact that they don’t appear to have any rules against whipping a horse so hard that the whipping causes welts on the horse doesn’t speak well for anyone in the racing industry and it tells me that the racing commissioners as well as the other people involved in this egregious cruelty to horses should have to be punished physically the way they did to an American brat in China who scratched the paint on some automobiles in China some years ago. He was “caned” which his parents objected to.
I have said this before: what sort of “sport” has “whipping guidelines”? That says it all.
Jordan Ross is in at least two videos on YouTube. I say this as an audio and video reference to his “reputation in the community” of harness racing.
The die-hard horse-abusing overlords in this sick, sick, sick industry (that is totally based on Animal Cruelty and continuous violations of Animal Welfare regarding horses) seem to think he’s great. He could be “the poster boy” for the 2023 harness racing championships in “the community” of Standardbred abuse and winning races and therefore money.
We have taught many horses to be ridden & a few to harness as well. Never did we use any whips , spurs, blinders, crops on any of them. The penalty for welting a horse should be welting the driver in our opinion! We`re so glad that are covering harness racing as well. We have worked with Standard bred horses. They are some of the most gentle & forgiving of equine breeds to work with & teach. We have always felt that way to much equipment is used on harness horses completely ignoring their natural instincts & feelings.