Former U.S. dressage Olympian sues US Equestrian Federation over 2019 shooting of trainee

Former U.S. dressage Olympian Michael Barisone has sued the United States Equestrian Federation in Manhattan federal court, alleging the governing body failed to act on complaints about a trainee whose conduct, he says, led to a bloody confrontation on his property in 2019.

The lawsuit, filed this month, contends that USEF received reports from at least three women more than a year before the Aug. 7, 2019, shooting at Barisone’s 60-acre farm in Long Valley, New Jersey, and that had the federation disciplined or suspended the trainee, the confrontation would not have occurred. The trainee, identified in court papers as Lauren Kanarek, survived after being shot in the chest.

Barisone, 61, a dressage rider who served as an alternate on the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, says he repeatedly appealed to USEF for help in the weeks before the shooting and warned the federation that he feared for his safety. "Had they acted in 2018 . . . this would never have happened," he told a news outlet, according to the lawsuit. The filing seeks unspecified damages and recounts multiple complaints lodged with USEF alleging abusive and threatening behavior by Kanarek.

According to the lawsuit, one complainant told USEF that Kanarek tormented her over the 1999 drowning death of her young son. Paralympian Robin Breuckmann, who previously gave Kanarek riding lessons, is cited in the court papers as reporting that Kanarek made "abusive, threatening, and vulgar statements" and posted threats on social media. A woman who worked as Kanarek’s assistant also reported abusive conduct, the suit says. Barisone’s filing asserts that those complaints were not responded to by USEF.

Barisone’s account states that he began working with Kanarek in March 2018 at his Loxahatchee, Florida, facility and later allowed Kanarek and her boyfriend, Robert Goodwin, to stay in a vacant apartment on his New Jersey farm while she continued training. The suit alleges repeated incidents of threatening behavior, including refusals to leave the property after maintenance problems and threats against Barisone, his fiancée, the farm and the horses. The complaint also alleges ongoing substance abuse by Kanarek.

Barisone was arrested in the wake of the 2019 shooting and faced felony charges that collectively carried a possible sentence of up to 60 years if convicted. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity at trial and spent roughly two and a half years in jail and later in New Jersey mental health facilities. He was confined to such facilities until November 2023 and has since said he was cleared by a New Jersey judge to travel along the East Coast without restriction.

Kanarek filed a civil suit against Barisone in October 2019; court records show that case was later dropped. USEF has declined to comment on the new litigation, and Kanarek did not respond to requests for comment, according to the lawsuit and related reporting.

Barisone’s suit contends that had USEF imposed sanctions or a lifetime ban on Kanarek in 2018 or 2019 as some complainants urged, "the August 7, 2019, incident would never have happened." The filing asks the federal court to hold the federation accountable for allegedly failing to prevent foreseeable harm to a coach who had raised concerns with the organization.

The lawsuit adds to a complex post-incident record that includes criminal proceedings, mental health evaluations and prior civil litigation. It frames the federation’s actions — or lack of them — as central to the question of whether the shooting was preventable. USEF’s internal handling of complaints and the standards it applies to discipline members have become a focal point in the plaintiff’s claim.

The case will proceed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. No trial date has been publicly announced. The lawsuit requests unspecified monetary relief and asks the court to examine USEF’s conduct in response to the complaints that preceded the 2019 shooting.