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Judge extends window to indict driver accused of killing Johnny Gaudreau and his brother

Click to play video: 'Former Calgary Flames NHL player Johnny Gaudreau, brother Matthew killed in New Jersey collision'
Former Calgary Flames NHL player Johnny Gaudreau, brother Matthew killed in New Jersey collision
RELATED VIDEO (From Aug. 30, 2024) Former Calgary Flames player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau were killed in a collision in New Jersey on Thursday. New Jersey Police said they were riding their bikes when they were struck by an SUV. The driver of the vehicle was "suspected of being under the influence of alcohol," police said – Aug 30, 2024

The driver charged with killing NHL hockey player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, as they were cycling on a rural New Jersey road briefly appeared in court Tuesday, where the judge extended the window for prosecutors to seek an indictment.

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.

Sean M. Higgins, right, the driver charged with killing NHL hockey player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew as they bicycled on a rural road, appears at the Salem County, N.J., Courthouse with his lawyer Matthew Portella, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024, in Salem, N.J. AP Photo/Matt Slocum

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.

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Johnny Gaudreau, 31, and Matthew Gaudreau, 29, were killed near their childhood home in South Jersey on Aug. 29, 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.

Calgary Flames left wing Johnny Gaudreau celebrates his 100th season point, an assist, during NHL hockey action against the Seattle Kraken in Calgary on April 12, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Larry MacDougal

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.

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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.

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Higgins faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. The judge said that made him a flight risk and ordered him jailed until the trial.

Defence 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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