The Kentucky Court of Appeals has issued a mixed ruling in the John Veitch/Life At Ten case and has ordered reconsideration of the one-year suspension handed the former chief steward for horse racing in the Bluegrass state.

In the Oct. 25 ruling, the three-judge panel determined the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) acted properly in upholding a hearing officer’s conclusion that Veitch should have ordered Life At Ten sent for post-race testing following her lackluster effort in the 2010 Breeders’ Cup Ladies’ Classic, now called the Distaff. 

The judges also ruled, however, that the hearing officer’s conclusion and KHRC affirmation that Veitch should have taken action with regard to Life At Ten prior to the race did not constitute a violation of racing regulations and that he should not have been suspended for not ordering a pre-race veterinary inspection of the filly.

Veitch, a Hall of Fame trainer who was Kentucky’s top regulator, was subsequently suspended for a year when the KHRC upheld a hearing officer’s report into the circumstances surrounding the performance of Life At Ten during the Ladies’ Classic