Sean Higgins turned down a 28-year plea deal in the crash that killed Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau, and his lawyer conceded a defense blood test came back at 0.08.

For two years the defense has fought over a few hundredths of a point on a blood test. On Monday it gave up most of that ground, conceding its own test came back at 0.08, right at the legal limit, while still saying the prosecution's 0.087 was high. Higgins still said no to 28 years. That is a big bet. If a jury convicts him on every count, he faces up to 91.5 years. From here, any guilty plea comes with no deal attached.

Sean Higgins, the New Jersey driver charged in the August 2024 deaths of NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau, rejected a plea deal Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, at a final hearing before his trial, Court TV reported. Prosecutors had offered to let Higgins, 45, plead guilty to two counts of aggravated manslaughter and a first-offense DWI in exchange for a 28-year sentence, Court TV and the New York Post reported. Under New Jersey law he would have served 85 percent of that term, Court TV reported. Judge Michael Silvanio said the defense had countered with an 11-year sentence, which prosecutors rejected, according to Court TV. It is the second offer Higgins has refused. In 2025 he turned down a plea that carried 35 years, Court TV reported.

At the same hearing, defense attorney Richard Klineburger conceded that the defense's own test of Higgins' blood came back at 0.08, the legal limit for driving, the New York Post reported. The defense had previously argued his blood-alcohol content was 0.075 and that investigators tested only blood plasma rather than whole blood, while prosecutors have put the figure at 0.087, according to the Post. "It did come back, based upon the non-tainted tube, it came back as a .08, as opposed to .087," Klineburger said, the Post reported.

Higgins was indicted on six charges, including two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter and two counts of second-degree vehicular homicide, Court TV reported. Silvanio told him that if he is convicted on all counts at trial, he faces up to 91.5 years in prison and would not be eligible for parole until he had served 68 years, Court TV and the Post reported. The judge said that from now on, any guilty plea would be an open plea with no promise of a lighter sentence from the prosecution, the Post reported. "Yes, sir," Higgins said when asked whether he understood what it meant to reject the deal, according to the Post.

Prosecutors say Higgins was trying to pass an SUV illegally on a road in Oldmans Township on Aug. 29, 2024, when his Jeep struck the brothers, who were riding bicycles, Court TV reported. The defense has suggested the brothers contributed to the crash by riding in the middle of the road, has noted that their bicycles had no lights, and has argued that the brothers' own blood-alcohol levels were over the legal limit, according to Court TV. The Post reported that new evidence photos of the bikes and Higgins' damaged Jeep Grand Cherokee were made public Monday, along with defense diagrams of the scene that the defense said cast doubt on whether Higgins was reckless. The brothers were on their way home from their sister's wedding rehearsal dinner, the Post reported.

Johnny Gaudreau was about to begin his third season with the Columbus Blue Jackets after eight seasons with the Calgary Flames, and Matthew Gaudreau, a former Boston College player, was working as a high school hockey coach, Court TV reported. Silvanio set jury selection for the first two weeks of December, with the trial to begin Jan. 4, 2027, after a holiday break, Court TV reported. Higgins has pleaded not guilty. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.