Between July 1, 2018, and November 30, 2019, 56 horses either died or were euthanized as the result of injuries sustained while training or racing at Santa Anita Park. | Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Between July 1, 2018, and November 30, 2019, 56 horses either died or were euthanized as the result of injuries sustained while training or racing at Santa Anita Park.

In response, track operators asked Mick Peterson, PhD, professor of biosystems and agricultural engineering at the University of Kentucky, to thoroughly examine the surface conditions at Santa Anita. The evaluation revealed no track-related link to the fatalities, Peterson said.

Meanwhile, the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) launched its own investigation into the deaths and, in April, Lacey announced that her office had formed a task force to probe the