Officials are investigating whether one of West Virginia's top greyhound breeders altered health certificates for at least 35 dogs.
Assistant Attorney General Ron Brown said he and Assistant Attorney General Ben Yancey will present evidence against Paul Carbonneau to a three-member administrative panel. Brown said the panel will decide whether Carbonneau violated the state's rules of greyhound racing, and if so, what penalty to assess.
The panel began hearing evidence Wednesday at Tri-State Racetrack and Gaming Center in Nitro. The hearing will resume Friday, said George T. Sidiropolis, chairman of the West Virginia Racing Commission.
Sidiropolis said all 35 of Carbonneau's greyhounds at the Nitro track have been quarantined and suspended from racing until Carbonneau presents proof that the dogs' vaccinations are up to date.
Sidiropolis also is pursuing tests on those dogs, along with an unknown number of greyhounds at Carbonneau's farm in Hurricane, for diseases such as rabies and distemper as well as for steroid use.
A veterinarian examined five Carbonneau-bred dogs at Wheeling Island Racetrack and Gaming Center's kennel on Wednesday and found no evidence of disease, Sidiropolis said, but blood tests were still being conducted on those animals to test for steroids.
The health certificates for the Wheeling dogs all appeared to be in order, Sidiropolis said, and no quarantine was ordered for that track.
Carbonneau, who earned more than $330,000 last year from breeding greyhound racing dogs in West Virginia, not including purses and other winnings, did not immediately respond Wednesday to phone messages from The Associated Press seeking comment. He told The Charleston Gazette that false statements about him had been made to the media. However, he would not answer questions about the allegations, the newspaper reported in today's editions.
The newspaper also said Joe Oliver, the three-judge panel's chairman, barred its reporter from attending Wednesday's hearing. Sidiropolis, who was not at the hearing, said such proceedings should be open to the public. He said he planned to attend Friday's proceeding to ensure that it is open.