The last two months have seen a flurry of sanctions and eligibility decisions by the U.S. Center for SafeSport regarding a variety of professionals working in the U.S. hunter/jumper industry and beyond. 

Among those eight individuals added to the Centralized Disciplinary Database in the months of April and May are a Florida-based groom, a sport horse veterinarian from Kentucky, a U.S. Team vaulter, and the founder of the MDC Stirrups company. 

The actions taken by SafeSport include Ineligibility, Permeant Ineligibility, Suspension, and Temporary Restrictions. (You can find an overview and explanation of Centralized Disciplinary Database definitions here.) The individuals, listed by date of Issuance, include: 

  • Martin David Cohen of Seaside, CA, the president and CEO of MDC Stirrups, has been deemed Permanently Ineligible for charges including: “sexual misconduct – involving a minor; physical misconduct.” Cohen, a Chief Steward, previously worked at two Olympic Games and has served in the capacity of a rider, trainer, course designer, and judge.
  • Maurice Dailey of Richmond, TX has been deemed Permanently Ineligible by US Equestrian for “criminal disposition – sexual misconduct; criminal disposition – involving a minor.”
  • Vaulter Geoffrey Woolson of Tujunga, CA has been Suspended—”subject to appeal / not yet final”—for “sexual misconduct; abuse of process.” Woolson is a member of the U.S. Vaulting Team and an FEI Senior Bronze Medalist who also works as an actor and content creator in L.A.
  • Eventer Joseph McKinley of Vanguard Eventing in Livermore, CA is facing Temporary Restrictions for allegations of misconduct. McKinley also appeared on the show Full Metal Jousting on the History Channel. He is currently subject to: “no contact directive(s), contact / communication limitation(s), no unsupervised coaching / training.” 
  • Russell Matthews, a saddlebred, has been deemed Permanently Ineligible “subject to appeal / not yet final” for “sexual misconduct; criminal disposition” with “no contact directive(s).”
  • Veterinarian Chris Newton, a shareholder at Rood & Riddle in Lexington, KY, has been Suspended for three years by USEF—“subject to appeal/not yet finalized”—for sexual misconduct. Newton, who has been with the practice for 25 years, served as the team veterinarian for the North American Junior Young Rider Championship and as the treating veterinarian for the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event for more than a decade. He also competes in eventing up to the 4* level. 
  • Hunter trainer Brian Gruber of Napa, CA has been deemed Permanently Ineligible by SafeSport “subject to appeal / not yet final” for “sexual misconduct – involving a minor; physical misconduct” with “no contact directive(s).” Gruber and his wife, Missy Gruber, operate Tulucay Farm Show Stables, a hunter/jumper facility in Napa.  
  • Florida-based groom Jimmin Alvarez Calvillo has been deemed Ineligible “subject to appeal / not yet final” for “criminal disposition – sexual misconduct.” According to a local news story, Calvillo was charged by police with three counts of lewd and lascivious molestation after being caught abusing a 14-year-old girl on camera at an unnamed equestrian facility in Greenacres, FL where he worked.

The U.S. Center for SafeSport was created to address the issue of abuse in sport. It works in conjunction with US Equestrian to enforce the SafeSport Code and the Federal Safe Sport Act, created in response to the Larry Nassar/U.S. Gymnastics case in 2017. The aim of both the Code and the Safe Sport Act is to protect athletes across all Olympic and amateur sporting disciplines from harm or abuse. 

If you have a reasonable suspicion of sexual misconduct, make a report electronically to the U.S. Center for SafeSport or call (720) 531-0340.

For more information on abuse in horse sport and what you can do about it, visit WeRideTogether.today

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