Man Charged With Hitting And Killing Johnny Gaudreau Plans To File Motion To Dismiss Indictment
Sean M. Higgins, the man accused of drunkenly hitting and killing late NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, last summer plans to ask a judge to dismiss the indictment against him, after new court documents say that the Gaudreau brothers had been drinking before the incident.
Higgins and his defense team rejected a plea deal last month, which would have sentenced him to 35 years in prison in exchange for a guilty plea.
According to NJ.com, at Higgins' latest hearing on Tuesday, court documents revealed plans to ask for the indictment to be dismissed, alleging that the grand jury was not given evidence that could have supported Higgins being found innocent.
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The same court documents also say tests revealed that Johnny Gaudreau had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.129% at the time of his death, while Matthew Gaudreau's blood alcohol concentration was 0.134%.
Higgins' blog alcohol concentration at the time of the incident was 0.087% which is still above the legal limit.
The man accused of hitting and killing Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau last summer is planning to file a motion to dismiss his indictment. (Getty Images)
The defense did not claim that Gaudreaus' blood alcohol concentration at the time of their deaths contributed to the incident, but did say that they wanted more information pertaining to how this information was collected during the investigation.
"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," Higgins' attorneys Richard F. Klineburger III and Matthew V. Portella said in a statement.
Members of the Gaudreau family were on hand for Tuesday's hearing but did not provide any comments.
The brothers' August 29 deaths — which even more tragically occurred on the evening before their sister's wedding — sent shockwaves through the hockey world last summer and has led to tributes from around the league, especially from the Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets, the two teams with which Johnny Gaudreau spent his NHL career.