by Ellen Harvey, Harness Racing Communications

Freehold, NJ — The United States Trotting Association and its Executive Vice President, Michael Tanner, along with the New York State Racing and Wagering Board, its chairman John Sabini, and members Daniel Hogan and John Simoni, have been named as defendants in a lawsuit filed by Jeffrey Brooks and Bulletproof Enterprises, Inc.

Brooks is the brother of David H. Brooks, presently on trial for securities violations pertaining to DHB Industries and former owner of many of the horses racing under Bulletproof and other stable names.

The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges that the USTA wrongly extended reciprocity to an action by the Ontario Racing Commission that suspended members of the Brooks family from participating in racing in that province. The ORC was not named in the suit.

The suit seeks in excess of $100 million in actual damages. Attorneys for the USTA are reviewing the filing.