Echoing what I said in one of my earlier posts, given the reputation for dishonesty of the infamous "fog jockey," in my opinion it would be difficult for him to prove up a claim for damages based on defamation of character. This is particularly true in Louisiana, where said jockey has plied his trade (when not serving suspensions) for many years and is well-known to horsemen in the state.

I'm sure all you guys and gals remember Billy Patin and Valhol, who won the Arkansas Derby at a boxcar price only to be DQ'ed from the purse money because the jockey carried a buzzer. I have no fear of facing a defamation claim over that last stasement because, in this country, truth is an absolute defense to defamation.

Patin and the "fog jockey" have ridden for much of their careers at the "minor" racetracks in Louisiana, i.e. Evangeline Downs, Delta Downs, and formerly Jefferson Downs, and I suspect that buzzers have been and are occasionally used on those circuits by certain riders. This is not to impugn the character of any individual who rides or has ridden at those tracks; it is just my opinion given my experiences, observations, and conversations with horsemen. I do believe that an effort is made to police that sort of activity; however, as the Patin/Valhol incident shows, not all such efforts are successful.

All that said, I have no knowledge of what happened in the race in question on Xmas eve at the Fair Grounds. We all try to explain aberrant results in ways that make sense to us. In retrospect, Valhol,although a maiden when he won the Arkansas Derbty, may have won without benefit of a battery as he was probably the best horse in the race; that doesn't mean that Patin didn't drop a buzzer on the track, in full view of the cameras, after the race was over.