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The brief hearing, in which the judge granted
prosecutors 30 additional days in which to seek formal charges
in the Gaudreaus' Aug. 29 deaths, marked the first time the
Gaudreau family and the 44-year-old defendant, Sean M. Higgins,
faced one another in court. Previously, Higgins appeared at
hearings via video from behind bars.
Authorities say Higgins, who is from Woodstown, in southwestern
New Jersey, was impaired after he drank five or six beers on the
day he drove into the brothers' bicycles, and that he has a
history of road rage and aggressive driving.
Johnny Gaudreau, 31, and Matthew Gaudreau, 29, were killed near
their childhood home in South Jersey on the eve of their
sister's wedding. The family, including their father, Guy
Gaudreau, declined to comment on the case Tuesday at the Salem
County Courthouse.
Higgins told police that on the day of his arrest, he had been
driving around for two hours while talking to a friend on the
phone after having an upsetting conversation with his mother.
A driver who was in front of Higgins told police that Higgins
had been driving aggressively. When she and the vehicle ahead of
her slowed down and moved left to go around the cyclists,
Higgins sped up and veered right, striking the Gaudreaus, she
said.
Higgins had a blood-alcohol level of .087, which is above the
state’s .08 legal limit, and he failed a field sobriety test,
police said. He faces preliminary charges of two counts of death
by auto, reckless driving, possession of an open container, and
consuming alcohol in a vehicle.
Higgins faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of one of
the death by auto counts. The judge said that made him a flight
risk and ordered him jailed until the trial.
Defense lawyer Matthew Portella has called Higgins “a loving
father of two daughters,” and a good person who “made a horrible
decision that night.” Portella declined to comment after
Tuesday's hearing.
Johnny Gaudreau, known as “Johnny Hockey,” played 10 full
seasons in the NHL and was set to start his third with the
Columbus Blue Jackets. He played his first eight seasons with
the Calgary Flames.
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