Posted on: September 16, 2024, 03:06h. 

Last updated on: September 16, 2024, 03:06h.

The Hawthorne Race Course near Chicago has denounced a RICO lawsuit brought by a former board member that accuses it of racing sick and injured horses, describing it as “false and misguided.”

The complaint, filed last week by veterinarian Christine Tuma, claims track officials knowingly allowed unfit horses to run because they wanted to boost wagering revenues. This would help to raise money for a planned casino at the 133-year-old track, the suit asserts.

These actions led to the deaths of at least 21 horses between 2022, claims the lawsuit, which also names the Illinois Racing Board (IRB).

“Beginning on or before March of 2022, the RICO Defendants formed an enterprise, whose criminal activities were intended to enrich themselves, maintain their powerful positions, and generate funds for the construction of a casino at the racetrack,” it said.

Powers Stripped

Tuma, a former IRB board member, claims that she was stripped of her powers to disqualify sick horses in the fall of 2022 by Illinois Racing Board state veterinarian Dawn Folker-Calderon. That’s after a policy was introduced requiring a second veterinary opinion to be sought whenever Tuma declared a horse too sick to run.

If the two opinions did not concur, Calderon would have the final say. In this way, more than 80 of Tuma’s diagnoses were overruled, per the lawsuit.

Tuma also claims Hawthorne and IRB employees transmitted false information about the health of horses to federal and state regulators in Illinois and Kentucky.

Tuma was let go three months after she sent a whistleblower letter outlining her allegations to the IRB and Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority. She was told this was to save costs but claims retaliation.

Tuma alleges the defendants are guilty of civil conspiracy, retaliatory termination, and violations of the Illinois Whistleblower Act, and as such her complaint meets the bar for a RICO suit.

Casino on Hold

Illinois passed legislation in 2019 that gave racetracks the right to apply for casino licenses. Later that year, the state granted Hawthorne preliminary approval to move forward, and it began demolition work on its grandstand. However, the project is currently stalled.

The Chicago Tribune reported in May that the track’s owners have been unable to get loans to build the casino and owe contractors $6.7 million.

Meanwhile, track officials said they would “vigorously contest” Tuma’s lawsuit in a statement last week.

Besides defaming Hawthorne, the oldest family-owned race course in North America with an unmatched record of safety and integrity, Tuma is using the legal system to settle professional disagreements with other, more experienced and accomplished veterinarians at the track and the Illinois Racing Board,” a spokesperson said.

“These professionals have dedicated their careers at Hawthorne and the racing board to performing with the highest degree of professionalism,” they added.