An former horse trainer has been ordered to fork over $9 million to a woman who accused him of raping her in 2019.
Ari Herbertson, 32, was ordered to pay the sum earlier this week in civil court in California, after already serving a year in jail in connection to the 2019 incident at Golden Gate Fields.
He pleaded no contest to a charge of assault with a deadly weapon as part of a plea deal in 2021, which also saw felony charges of sexual battery, sexual penetration and assault with intent to commit a sex crime dropped.
He was subsequently sentenced to one year in jail and two years probation in connection to the January 12, 2019, incident, during which Herbertson allegedly drugged her drink and sexually assaulted her in concert with another man, both vaginally and anally.
According to the plaintiff – named only as Jane Doe – Herbertson and the exercise rider approached her at the paddock bar at the racetrack where they both worked before allegedly spiking a mimosa she left behind when she went to see a horse.
Ari Herbertson, 32, was ordered to pay the sum earlier this week in civil court in California, after already serving a year in jail in connection to alleged incident
The incident happened at Golden Gate Fields in January 2019, and saw the unnamed ex-officer raped both anally and vaginally by Herbertson and an accomplice, officials said
Through a combination of memory, video on her own phone, security footage, and memories accessed later through Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, Doe claimed the pair carried her to Herbertson’s vehicle, drove her to a nearby field, and raped her – before leaving her unconscious in her own car.
In his order, Alameda County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Brand explained how the unnamed woman suffered in the long-term as a result from the traumatic incident.
‘[Doe] testified that she is concerned that any beverage she may purchase in public has been drugged,’ Brand wrote, as he put the civil complain, filed in January 22, to bed.
‘Plaintiff related that she intentionally gained approximately 50 pounds to make herself less attractive so that she would not be raped again,’ he went on.
‘[Doe] also stated that she experiences memory loss that she characterized as «holes» in her brain.’
The complaint – aside for asking for millions in damages – named Herbertson, track owner The Stronach Group, Golden Gate Fields, and ex-Exercise Rider Justin Rivera as defendants.
The court, Band wrote, found that the plaintiff had sustained her burden of proof with respect to Herbertson’s liability, by engaging in acts to which the plaintiff did not consent and suffered harm.
The court further found that Doe, through court testimony and accounts offered to investigators, proved that Herbertson is liable to her for the tort of Battery (Second Cause of Action), in that Defendant Herbertson raped Plaintiff by engaging in acts to which Plaintiff did not consent.
Another portion of the filing, meanwhile, offered a detailed account of the alleged assault.
Herbertson – seen outside a stable in Santa Rosa in 2018 – already plead no contest as part of a plea deal in connection to the attack, but has since been found liable in a subsequent civil trial
‘On January 12, 2019, Plaintiff went to Golden Gate Fields [GGF] at approximately 12:30 p.m.
‘She went to the Paddock Bar at GGF and visited with her friend Cindy Desimone (“Ms. Desimone,”) who owns horses that were racing that day.
‘At first, Plaintiff and Ms. Desimone were alone in the bar, but eventually Defendant Herbertson and his friend Justin Rivera (“Mr. Rivera”) entered the bar,’ the account continues.
‘Plaintiff and Defendant Herbertson were casually acquainted, but did not have a dating relationship, or any other relationship beyond occasionally seeing each other at the track. She did not have his phone number,’ the filing notes.
‘Plaintiff, Ms. Desimone, Defendant Herbertson and Mr. Rivera each had a shot of tequila together, and then Plaintiff resumed her conversation with Ms. Desimone.
‘Defendant Herbertson and Mr. Rivera sat on the other side of the bar.
‘Plaintiff then ordered a mimosa from bartender Reagan Kenney (“Ms. Kenny.”) Plaintiff had one small sip of the mimosa, and then went with Ms. Desimone to the paddock area to inspect Ms. Desimone’s horse, which was about to race.
‘The two of them then returned to the Paddock Bar to watch the race. They also resumed their conversation.’
Shortly thereafter, officials said, Herbertson – an accomplished trainer before his arrest – called over to the ex-law enforcement official and asked her if ‘she was going to nurse her drink all day or finish it.’
The victim proceeded to wave Herbertson away – before having a second sip of her mimosa.
‘Almost immediately, she felt the sensation that she had been drugged,’ the filing said.
‘She stated that she had not consumed enough alcohol to be intoxicated; yet she started behaving as if she was completely intoxicated.
‘Plaintiff believes that her drink had been spiked with a date rape drug. She was told to leave the bar by the bartender, Ms. Kenney, after she began acting this way.
‘Plaintiff testified that she kissed a security guard and asked him for sex, writing her phone number on his hand.
‘Plaintiff also related that she howled at a helicopter that she perceived circling over the track,’ the account added.
‘(It is unclear to the Court whether that helicopter existed or whether Plaintiff was hallucinating.)’
In his order, Alameda County oficials explained how the unnamed woman suffered at the hands of the con, and in the long-term as a result from the traumatic incident
At some point, the plaintiff vomited, Brand went on.
‘Many of Plaintiff’s memories that day, after her apparent drugging, were recovered through a medically supervised modality called EMDR, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing.
‘Plaintiff began EMDR therapy after she had a flashback while driving in Kentucky of being raped.
‘She became concerned about the danger that might result from such flashbacks and concluded that they should occur in a medically controlled environment, rather than while driving on a freeway.
‘Plaintiff testified that through EMDR therapy she recovered “a clear memory” of the events of January 12 and January 13, 2019 that are relevant to this action.
‘After behaving in an intoxicated manner, as described above, Plaintiff was carried out of GGF by Defendant Herbertson and Mr. Rivera and placed in Defendant Herbertson’s truck, which was parked close to the track’s exit.
‘She was then driven to her car, which was parked elsewhere in the track parking lot.
A portion of the filing offered a detailed account of the alleged assault, carried out by Herbertson and exercise rider Justin Rivera (not pictured)
‘Either Defendant Herbertson or Mr. Rivera then searched her and located Plaintiff’s car keys,’ the account continued.
‘Mr. Rivera then drove Plaintiff in her car to an adjacent soccer field and parked. Defendant Herbertson followed in his own truck.
‘Defendant Herbertson and Mr. Rivera then proceeded to forcefully rape Plaintiff, both vaginally and anally,’ it went on to state.
‘They covered her mouth with their hands, stripped off her clothing, and proceeded with the rape.’
Brand added: ‘[Doe] cannot clearly remember if the rape happened on the soccer field where her car was parked by Mr. Rivera, or elsewhere.
‘The Court finds that Plaintiff’s failure to recall this detail does not detract from or undermine the overall credibility of her testimony.
‘Plaintiff vomited several times during the attack, eventually passing out.
‘When Plaintiff awoke, she testified that her boots were half-pulled on and her clothes were rearranged, as if Defendant Herbertson and Mr. Rivera had attempted to re-dress her.
‘She was lying face up on the tilted driver’s seat, her mouth filled with vomit.
‘She testified that she felt that she had been left for dead and feared that she very well might have died by drowning in her own vomit,’ he continued.
‘Her car was turned off, and she was freezing cold. Plaintiff turned on her vehicle for warmth, vomited again, and passed out for another couple of hours. When she awoke for a second time, her car was still running.’
The victim then attempted to drive to a hospital a few miles away in Antioch as it was closer to her home, officials said, but before reaching the hospital, decided to go home.
Once she arrived, ‘[Doe] removed her clothes and preserved them in a garbage bag. She stated that as a trained law enforcement officer, she was aware that to preserve evidence she should not shower.
‘However, she explained that she had an overwhelming desire to clean up and take a shower, which she did. She then reported the events to the police.
‘Plaintiff participated in and attended court hearings related to the criminal prosecution of Defendant Herbertson. She was present in Court when he pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of assault with a deadly weapon, a felony.
‘She read an impact statement to that court, as she as she powerfully did to this Court. The Court finds that Defendant’s no contest plea is conclusive evidence of Defendant’s guilt in the criminal proceeding.’
