Albarado conviction on assault overturned on appeal

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The 2012 conviction of jockey Robby Albarado on a charge of fourth-degree assault has been overturned on appeal in Jefferson Circuit Court in Louisville.

According to circuit court documents released Thursday by Albarado’s attorney Scott Barton, the jury conviction in an alleged domestic-violence incident that occurred April 30, 2012, involving a former girlfriend named Carolina Martinez was overturned by Judge Brian Edwards. Edwards cited testimony that was “overly predjudicial” against Albarado, and said that he was compelled to vacate the conviction.

Less than two months after being arrested in the case, Albarado was granted an injunction in Frankfort, Ky., which allowed him to continue riding, pending the outcome of the court proceedings and his subsequent appeal. The conviction was filed Aug. 15, 2012, with the Jefferson District Court jury recommending a $500 fine and no jail time as a sentence.

Albarado deferred comment Thursday to Barton, who declined to make a further statement.

The case was prosecuted by the Jefferson County Attorney’s office, which has the right to appeal Edwards’s decision to the Kentucky Supreme Court or to retry the case.

It was the second such highly publicized incident involving Albarado, following a March 31, 2011, argument with his then-wife, Kimber. Charges of wanton endangerment and domestic assault in that case were later pleaded down to a lesser charge, with Albarado being placed on a two-year unsupervised probation that since has expired.

Into this week, Albarado, 40, had won 4,544 races, 38th-most all-time in North America. The Louisiana native is best known as the regular rider of Mineshaft, the 2003 Horse of the Year, and Curlin, the 2007-08 Horse of the Year. He currently is riding at Churchill Downs in Louisville, where he makes his permanent home and where his three children live.