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On August 30, 2024, NHL superstar Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew were struck and killed by a vehicle while riding bicycles in their hometown in New Jersey.
Shortly after the incident, the driver of the vehicle, Sean Higgins, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. Higgins was alleged attempting to illegally pass two vehicles when his own vehicle struck the brothers.
He later confessed to police that he had been operating the vehicle under the influence. Now, however, Higgins is asking for the confession to be stricken from the record, according to a report from the New York Post.
Man Who Struck And Killed NHL Star Johnny Gaudreau Previously Confessed
“I hit them. I hit them,” New Jersey State Police Sgt. Kenneth Flanegan testified that Higgins told him as he reported to the scene of the accident.
“I passed back over because he was passing [in] this lane. I hit the bikers,” body camera captured Higgins saying of the incident, alleging that the vehicle he was attempting to pass had moved into the improper lane. “My life is over. I just hit people, apparently. I don’t know what the hell I just hit. I hit bikers who were in the middle of the road, in the dark,” he continued.
A blood draw at the hospital allegedly showed that Higgins’ blood alcohol level was .087, just above New Jersey’s .08 legal limit.
New Jersey State Police trooper Marl Allonardo testified that “I could detect an odor of alcoholic beverage from defendant’s breath as I spoke to him.”
Allonardo also claimed that Higgins failed a field sobriety test. Prior to the test, body cam footage shows Higgins telling police that he had been drinking, but had not had a beer within the last hour or two before the accident.
Higgins previously rejected a 35-year-sentence plea deal, but has pleaded not guilty to reckless vehicular homicide, aggravated manslaughter, and related charges.
If convicted on all counts, he could serve up to a 70-year prison sentence.
Higgins’ lawyers argue that he wasn’t properly read his Miranda rights, and that his confession should not be admissible in court.