Judge won't toss case against man accused of killing Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau
A New Jersey judge has ruled the case against a man charged in the Aug. 29 death of Columbus Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew , will move forward.
Salem County Superior Court Judge Michael Silvanio heard arguments April 15 from prosecutors and attorneys for Sean Higgins about several issues related to the charges Higgins faces and what evidence a jury would potentially be able to hear.
Higgins, 44, faces six charges, including aggravated manslaughter and reckless vehicular homicide. Court records say Higgins had a blood alcohol level of 0.087 at the time of the crash.
Johnny, 31, and his brother Matthew, 29, died after being struck by a Jeep driven by Higgins while bicycling in Oldmans Township, New Jersey . The brothers had been in town to attend their sister's wedding.
What did attorneys argue at Sean Higgins' hearing?
Higgins' attorneys asked Silvanio to throw out the indictment against Higgins , or at least parts of it. In motions filed before the hearing, the attorneys said prosecutors had not presented evidence to the grand jury about the Gaudreau brothers' blood-alcohol levels.
Toxicology reports found Johnny Gaudreau had a blood-alcohol level of 0.134, and Matthew Gaudreau's was 0.129. New Jersey does not have any law against bicycling while intoxicated. Had the grand jury heard this information, Higgins' attorneys argued they may have decided that the brothers were contributorily negligent and different charges were more appropriate for their client.
Attorney Matthew Portella stressed that he and co-counsel Richard Klineburger were fulfilling their obligations to represent Higgins and not try to disparage the brothers.
"We are not blaming the two bicyclists for the incident," Portella said. "That would be ridiculous. That would be wrong."
Guy and Jane Gaudreau, as well as the sisters of Johnny and Matthew and several other family members, were in attendance during the hearing.
Portella said testimony that Higgins had been trying to accelerate in his Jeep after the crash was because Higgins was trying to turn around and go back to the scene after realizing he had hit something, not flee as prosecutors have argued.
"If he was going to leave, he would have left," Portella said.
Salem County Assistant Prosecutor Michael Mestern argued the brothers hadn't broken any law and witnesses were clear about the brothers not riding their bicycles in a way that contributed to the crash.
"He could have immediately stopped. He chose not to," Mestern said. "When he realized he wasn't going to be able to get out of this situation, he pulled over. He pulls over and gets rid of the evidence."
Mestern said Higgins did not call 911, but instead made calls to other people and tried to get rid of both open and unopened alcoholic beverage containers that were inside his Jeep. He said the arguments from Higgins' attorneys that Higgins didn't know he had hit anyone.
"It's impossible for someone with a straight face to do that much damage to a vehicle and not know you hit something," Mestern said.
Silvanio sided with prosecutors, saying the case could move forward and the grand jury had heard all the relevant evidence it needed to hear to make a "sound decision."
Silvanio also sided with Mestern in denying a request from Higgins' defense team for information about plea negotiations in other similar cases. Klineburger had argued Higgins was being treated unfairly because of the "celebrity" status Johnny Gaudreau had in being a NHL All-Star.
Higgins rejected a plea offer in January that would have resulted in a 35-year prison sentence.
Silvanio said he didn't see the relevance in Klineburger's request and that each case is based on different facts "like snowflakes" that makes comparing cases difficult.
Other arguments made during the hearing related to legal issues surrounding evidence and how it has been provided.
What will happen next in Johnny Gaudreau case?
Higgins will continue to be held in the New Jersey jail where he has been housed since his arrest on the night of the crash.
Another court date is scheduled for June.
Reporter Bethany Bruner can be reached at bbruner@gannett.com or on Bluesky at @bethanybruner.dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Judge says case against man accused of killing Blue Jackets' Gaudreau to continue
