A lawsuit brought by a group of bettors against trainer Bob Baffert is residing in its third venue. Now it’s the subject of whether a different judge should be assigned.
The case was brought by plaintiffs who want compensation for wagers left uncashed after, they allege, Medina Spirit was wrongfully entered and won the 2021 Kentucky Derby (G1) only to be disqualified after testing positive for betamethasone. The suit originated in California in 2021 but was soon voluntarily dismissed and refiled in New Jersey. Baffert has asked the claims be summarily dismissed as a matter of law.
After the case languished for 2 1/2 years in New Jersey, Judge Michael E. Farbiarz ordered it transferred to the Western District of Kentucky in Louisville. District Judge Claria Horn Boom was assigned the case Feb. 20.
Baffert’s lawyers filed a motion Feb. 23 asking the case be reassigned to Judge David J. Hale, who last year dismissed a suit against Baffert and Churchill Downs filed by a separate group of bettors led by Anthony Mattera. The dismissal is under appeal.
Cases in the Louisville Division of the Western District of Kentucky are not assigned at their origin to judges who have handled similar subject matter. Instead, a “General Order” requires random assignment. Assignments are handled via a “case assignment deck” that is electronically shuffled so that the sequence of judges assigned is random and the name of the judge is not known until the card is drawn.
