A drunk driver who allegedly mowed down NHL player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, last August in New Jersey was indicted Wednesday.
Sean Higgins, 44, had a blood-alcohol level of .087 and failed a field sobriety test when arrested after smashing into the brothers around 8:30 p.m. on Aug. 29 as they rode their bikes while in town for their sister’s wedding the next day. The state’s legal limit is .08.
Higgins was indicted on counts of reckless vehicular homicide, aggravated manslaughter, tampering with physical evidence and leaving the scene of a fatal accident, Jeffrey Barile, executive assistant prosecutor with the Salem County Prosecutor’s Office, told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Instagram / Katie Gaudreau
Katie Gaudreau with her brothers, Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, who were fatally struck by a suspected drunk driver. (Instagram / Katie Gaudreau)
Higgins has been jailed since the accident. In body cam footage of his arrest released last week, he said he was “freaked out” and asked responding officers what had happened. He also told police he’d had “five or six” beers that day.
Gaudreau, 31, was a star player for the Columbus Blue Jackets after eight years with the Calgary Flames, and 29-year-old Matthew had played in the minor leagues before becoming a youth hockey coach.
The wives of both men were pregnant. Meredith Gaudreau, Johnny’s widow, revealed at his funeral that she was expecting their third child, and Matthew’s wife, Madeline Gaudreau, had been expecting their first. Her due date is Dec. 31.
