California-based hunter/jumper trainer Robert Sean Leckie has been temporarily suspended by the U.S. Center for SafeSport, effective April 4.
Leckie, who runs Blue Ridge Farm in San Juan Capistrano, California, is accused of “allegations of misconduct,” and the temporary suspension includes a no-contact directive, meaning he cannot contact certain parties involved in the complaint against him. A spokesman for Leckie indicated the case involves a sexual harassment claim against the trainer.
The U.S. Equestrian Federation reciprocated the suspension, as it does in these cases, by adding Leckie to its ineligibility list, barring his participation in USEF-sanctioned shows and activities for the duration of the suspension.
A spokesman from a public relations firm representing Leckie said both he and his accuser are adults, and that the allegations against the trainer arose less than two years ago.
“This is not in any way about abuse or mistreatment of a minor,” he wrote.
The spokesman also questioned the fairness of the SafeSport process, saying it does not provide due process for the accused.
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“Publicly identifying an accuser (or revealing their identifying information) is a violation of SafeSport code. There is no corresponding protection for those who have been accused,” his email noted. “This means that an accuser can, as has happened in Sean Leckie’s case, post her version of events on a website with enough details and leave other bread crumbs so anyone with access to the internet would be able to determine the accused is Mr. Leckie. Under the SafeSport code, much of the information involved in the process is deemed confidential, and if Mr. Leckie were to speak, revealing such information is in and of itself a violation of SafeSport, which they identify as an ‘Abuse of Process’ violation.”
Listing multiple concerns related to the SafeSport process, the spokesman wrote, “SafeSport’s policies and code have gone beyond what the federal law envisioned and intended SafeSport to do.
“A process intended to protect children has been weaponized by adults seeking to advance their own agendas,” he added. “Here, it is being used as a mechanism to seek personal revenge. This has to stop. There are other avenues, primarily the courts, to properly handle claims of sex harassment by a former employee.”
No civil or criminal charges have been filed against Leckie in Orange County, California, where he lives.
Leckie also was recently named to the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association Zone 10 Committee to serve a term from 2025 to 2029, but his name had been removed from the list of committee members as of April 9.
