Defense team alleges Gaudreau brothers were intoxicated before fatal crash, seeks to have charges dropped

Attorneys for the New Jersey man charged with killing Columbus Blue Jackets star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew are planning to ask a judge to dismiss charges against him on grounds. Court documents allege that the brothers had been drinking before their fatal accident last August, according to a report by NJ.com. Sean M. Higgins, 44, who faces two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter among other charges after striking and killing the Gaudreau brothers while they were biking on the shoulder of a Salem County roadway in New Jersey, rejected a plea deal last month that would have seen him sentenced to 35 years in prison in exchange for a guilty plea.

In a new court filing, Higgins’ attorneys say that testing done following the crash showed that Johnny had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.129% and Matthew had a BAC of 0.134%, compared to their client who had a 0.087%. The filing asks for additional information about how the BAC of each individual was collected, but does not allege that the Gaudreau brothers’ drinking played any role in the crash.

The attorneys in question are asking for more information about the testing protocols used and any other records related to conducting on the samples, as well as records on other Salem County plea offers involving reckless vehicular homicide and aggravated manslaughter charges. The attorneys argue that these are important to their client’s defense, and also that the 35-year plea deal made to Higgins is higher than that of other cases due to the notoriety of the case and the Gaudreau family.

“We believe these filings are essential to ensuring that our client’s Constitutional rights are protected and that he is not being treated unfairly based upon the amount of publicity being garnered,” Richard F. Klineburger III and Matthew V. Portella, Higgins’ attorneys, said in a statement.

The defense now plans to file a motion seeking dismissal of Higgins’ December indictment, arguing that the grand jury was not presented with evidence that could have supported the defendant’s innocence. The defense has also signaled that it wants to file motions to exclude several pieces of evidence from the trial, including their client’s blood alcohol content, the state’s motor vehicle crash report, and statements that Higgins had made to police.

According to prosecutors, Higgins had been driving erratically and aggressively traveling north on Route 551/Pennsville-Auburn Road in Oldmans Township when he attempted to illegally pass an SUV on the shoulder of the road, hitting and killing the Gaudreaus as they rode their bikes. Higgins, who admitted to authorities that he had been drinking heavily prior to the crash, that his drinking had contributed to his erratic driving, and that he had attempted to hide his beer cans, was arrested at the scene after failing a field sobriety test.

Higgins, a major in the New Jersey Army National Guard who works for a substance abuse treatment network, was indicted in December on two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter, two counts of second-degree vehicular homicide, second-degree leaving the scene of a fatal accident and fourth-degree tampering with physical evidence. He was also issued citations charging him with driving while intoxicated, consuming alcohol in a motor vehicle, having an open alcohol container in a vehicle, improper passing, reckless driving and making an unsafe lane change.