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Gary and Mary West, the owners of Maximum Security, filed suit late Tuesday for the disqualification of their horse after crossing the finish line at the 145th Kentucky Derby earlier this month.
The Wests sued the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, its members, staff and shop stewards, who disqualified maximum security for interference. The federal lawsuit was filed in the US District Court in Frankfurt, Kentucky, and seeks to overturn the decision and restore the original arrest order.
Country House, the horse that finished second at the start, was declared the winner.
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The lawsuit calls the disqualification process "bizarre and unconstitutional." The Wests also seek redistribution of Derby Scholarship money, jockey Luis Saez and coach John Servis. The winner's share was $ 1.86 million.
The lack of appeal procedure deprived them of their due process rights, say the owners. On May 6, they filed a Notice of Intention to Appeal with the Race Commission asking for a hearing from the full board, but this appeal was dismissed.
Earlier this week, Saez was suspended for 15 days of racing for "failure to control his mount and to make the effort necessary to maintain a straight line, which would have caused interference with several rivals". The jockey should appeal.
Kentucky Racing Commission spokeswoman Susan West declined to comment on the lawsuit.
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