The man who struck NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, in a fatal crash now wants the murder case thrown out after his lawyer presented evidence of his blood alcohol level being below the legal limit.
On Tuesday, the lawyer for Sean Higgins, age 45, claimed in court that an “expert determined Higgins’ blood alcohol content (BAC) was .075, which is below the legal limit of .08,” per the New York Post. Higgins has called for a dismissal of all charges against him and for prosecutors to a get a new grand jury indictment.
At Tuesday’s hearing held over video, defense attorney Richard Klineburger informed Salem County Superior Court Judge Michael Silvanio of the new development following his expert’s findings.
“It seems that it was plasma that was tested, not whole blood,” Klineburger said. “Based upon our expert report, that brings the actual BAC reading down to .075.”
Klineburger said the alleged discrepancy may have “impacted the grand jury” on its decision to indict Higgins on all the counts in the case, including first-degree aggravated manslaughter, reckless vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of a fatal accident and tampering with physical evidence.
Prosecutors have claimed that Higgins BAC stood above the legal limit at .087, noting that he told police he had roughly five or six drinks prior to striking Gaudreau and his brother.
Prosecutor Michael Mestern said that his team will run the BAC findings with his experts and investigators. The judge said that prosecutors would be allowed to get a new indictment if their findings concede to Higgins’ claims.
Higgins faces up to 70 years in prison if convicted of the original charges.
As Breitbart News reported, Team USA honored Johnny Gaudreau after winning gold against Canada at the Winter Olympics this past weekend.
“As the Americans celebrated their third-ever hockey gold, they brought out a Team U.S.A. jersey with Columbus Blue Jackets winger Johnny Gaudreau’s name on it. As the fans cheered in the stands at the Games, team captain Auston Matthews, Zach Werenski, and Matthew Tkachuk skated a victory lap around the ice, hoisting Gaudreau’s jersey,” the report noted.
