OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Phil Serpe was a proponent of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority [HISA]. As a trainer with a near spotless record over a 40-year career, Serpe wanted there to be a level playing field on the track. Serpe is still a proponent of HISA. But not under its current set-up. He believes that HISA, as well as the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit [HIWU], the independent enforcement agency of HISA’s Anti-Doping and Medication Program, are treating horsemen unfairly. Serpe is facing a two-year suspension and a $25,000 fine from HIWU for the finding of clenbuterol, considered a banned substance, in the horse Fast Kimmie after she won a $30,000 claiming race on Aug. 10 at Saratoga. Serpe has denied administering Fast Kimmie clenbuterol and claims, through records he got from his two veterinarian practices, that he hasn’t used clenbuterol in 4 1/2 years. Serpe said the amount of clenbuterol found in Fast Kimmie’s system - 27 picograms - wouldn’t be enough to impact a horse’s performance. Serpe’s suspension was lifted on Nov. 4 when HISA’s board of directors announced, via a press release, that an analysis and review on the issue of provisional suspensions is necessary to determine whether any modifications to the current rules are appropriate. However, following that review, it is possible Serpe’s suspension - as well as those handed to other trainers - could be reinstated. :: Subscribe to the DRF Post Time Email Newsletter: Get the news you need to play today's races!  In between being notified of his suspension and it being lifted, Serpe filed suit against the Federal Trade Commission and HISA claiming that HISA Is facially unconstitutional. His suit adds that HISA’s power is being applied in an unconstitutional manner and he is seeking a jury trial. He is the first trainer to fight HISA who is seeking a jury trial. Though the suspension has been lifted - at least temporarily - Serpe said he is still going through with his lawsuit. “We’re going to fight this to the end,” Serpe said. “People should not be treated the way I was treated. They strip you of your dignity. This is bigger than me. We’re going to fight this and hopefully we’ll make changes so other people don’t get hung out to dry.” Serpe has recently filed a motion seeking a preliminary injunction against the Federal Trade Commission and HISA from enforcing any of its penalties against him. Serpe said during his initial appeals process, which included the testing of a B sample of Fast Kimmie’s urine, he asked HIWU for additional testing of the horse’s hair follicles and a DNA analysis. Each request was denied. “They gave us no due process whatsoever,” Serpe said. “Everything we asked for they denied us.” In addition to his own suspension, Serpe said Fast Kimmie is prohibited from racing for 14 months, which he said is not fair to the horse or her owner Bob Vukovich. “I wanted HISA in the worst way, I wanted it, but I wanted it done correctly, not for them to come in and ruin people’s lives,” Serpe said. “How they are treating people, like we are criminals . . . If HISA or [HISA CEO] Lisa Lazarus really cared about horse racing they have to care about the people who are directly involved.” Serpe, 65, has made 8,057 starts and won 1,081 races since 1984. The only medication blemish on his record is an overage of phenylbutazone, a regulated non-steroidal anti-inflammatory, in a horse who raced at Gulfstream Park in 2013 for which he was fined $100. Serpe’s only other violation was breezing a horse too soon after it underwent shockwave therapy. Serpe said a two-year suspension would effectively end his career. “They want to give me a two-year suspension and a $25,000 fine, with no credit to my spotless record of [8,057] starts without a postrace positive for an illegal drug,” he said. “This can’t be.” :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.