Driver charged with killing hockey's Gaudreau brothers turns down plea deal

SALEM, N.J. (Court TV) — A driver accused of killing an NHL star and his brother while under the influence turned down a plea deal in court on Monday in a final hearing before his trial begins.

Sean Higgins, 45, was indicted on six charges, including two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter and two counts of second-degree vehicular homicide, in the deaths of hockey player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew Gaudreau. The two victims were on bicycles when they were killed.

Prosecutors say Higgins was trying to pass an SUV illegally when he hit both bicycles, but his defense has suggested the brothers contributed to their deaths by biking in the middle of the road. Higgins’s defense has also raised questions about the defendant’s blood alcohol level, while arguing that the victims’ blood alcohol levels were also over the legal limit. The defense has also raised the lack of lights on the Gaudreau brothers’ bicycles — state law requires bicyclists to use lights after dark.

On Monday, at a final hearing on discovery issues, Judge Michael Silvanio questioned Higgins to confirm he rejected a plea deal. If he’s convicted of all charges at trial, Higgins faces a maximum sentence of 91 1/2 years with parole eligibility after 68 years.

Prosecutors offered Higgins a deal that would have required him to plead guilty to two counts of aggravated manslaughter and to first-offense DUI for a total sentence of 28 years. Under New Jersey law, Higgins would have served 85 percent of the sentence in prison. Silvanio said Higgins’s defense had offered a counteroffer of an 11-year sentence, which prosecutors rejected.

This is the second plea offer that Higgins has refused. In 2025, he turned down an offer to plead guilty in exchange for a 35-year sentence.

Silvanio set jury selection for the first two weeks of December. The jury will get a break for the holidays and then return to hear the case, with the trial beginning on Jan. 4, 2027.

At the time of his death, Johnny Gaudreau was about to start his third season with the Columbus Blue Jackets after previously playing eight seasons with the Calgary Flames. Matthew Gaudreau, who previously played hockey at Boston College, was working as a high school coach.

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