Disgraced former trainer Jason Servis received a four-year prison sentence in the U.S. District Court in Manhattan on Wednesday.
Servis, 66, was among 31 trainers, veterinarians, drug distributors and others who have been charged since March 2020 over alleged doping affecting races in New York, Kentucky, Florida, New Jersey, Ohio and the United Arab Emirates.
Servis pled guilty to one felony count and one misdemeanor count related to the use of the banned substances Clenbuterol and SGF-1000. He was sentenced to four years’ prison time – the maximum judge Vyskocil could serve to Servis for the guilty pleas on the two counts. However, she seemed disappointed by the fact she could not sentence Servis to more time.
“Your counsel served you very well,” she said. “She got an outstanding plea deal for you. As a result, the maximum sentence you face is 48 months. I see no reason to go below it. In my judgment, more than 48 months might have been appropriate.
“You deliberately engaged in illegal conduct for years,” Vsykocil told Servis. “This was not a one-time offense or an aberration. Your doing so put the lives of the horses and the jockeys who rode them at risk. You caused staggering losses to multiple competitors, making more than 25 million in purses. You reaped huge financial rewards because of your criminal conduct.”
