ON THE SCENE

Hayden Panettiere’s Abusive Boyfriend Was With Her When She Died

Brian Hickerson showed zero emotion until after Panettiere was declared dead, according to police.

Hayden Panettiere’s on-again-off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson, who previously pleaded no contest to domestic violence, was with her when she died.

On Sunday, August 16, Panettiere was found dead in a South Carolina apartment complex at age 36. Police reports said there were no initial signs of foul play or a suspicious death.

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Now, according to a newly released report from the Greenville Police Department, published by WYFF News 4, emergency services arrived to check on an “unresponsive female” and saw that Panettiere was with Brian, age 37, and his brother, Zack.

The police report says that Zack referred to Panettiere as “his brother’s girlfriend.”

The report, which was largely redacted, also alleges that Zack was “very emotional while EMS were working on Hayden,” but that Brian “did not become emotional until EMS declared her officially deceased.”

Brian reportedly showed the officer “the bag of medication Hayden is currently on.” The report redacted the medication names.

According to dispatch audio obtained by People, officials mentioned “overdose” and “cardiac arrest” at the scene around the time of Panettiere’s death.

Sources told TMZ that Narcan, a medication typically administered to reverse the effects of an overdose, was used to treat Panettiere. Epinephrine, which is used to resuscitate patients in cardiac arrest, was also used at the scene.

The troubled Nashville star has openly struggled with substance abuse and postpartum depression.

Her relationship with Hickerson also tumultuous and marked with public incidents of abuse and violence. Hickerson, a South Carolina native, and Panettiere began dating in 2018.

Hickerson was charged with domestic violence several times throughout their relationship. In 2021, he pleaded no contest to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend after he was arrested in Los Angeles.

The charges pertained to incidents between May 2019 and February 2020 involving Panettiere. He was sentenced to 45 days in county jail, a five-year restraining order, four years of formal probation, and mandatory classes. He served 33 days in L.A. Men’s Central Jail.

A request to reduce his past felony charges was denied by a judge just three days before the Heroes actress died, Page Six reports. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office confirmed to the publication that Judge Olivia Rosales denied the motion last Thursday.

Panettiere spoke about the abuse in her memoir, This is Me: A Reckoning, writing that one night he beat her so badly that she did not leave the house for weeks afterward, according to NBC.

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In 2020, she came forward with the stories of this abuse, saying in a widely circulated statement, “I am prepared to do my part to make sure this man never hurts anyone again.”

The former child star outlined the incidents she faced with Hickerson in an interview with US Weekly in May, saying, “It was brutal. It was traumatic. It was emotional.”

“Getting an abusive person out of your life is like trying to rip a weed out that is so entangled into your life, and every time you pull it out another weed pops back up, and you’re like, I thought I killed this,” she said. “They always manage to find a way to slither back in, even if you’re an incredibly strong-willed person.”

In 2022, Panettiere told People that she and Hickerson had reconnected as friends. “He’s gone to treatment and done his time. And I’m trying to live in a place of forgiveness.”

New reports suggest Panettiere and Hickerson have been together more times than Panettiere’s inner circle has known. At the time of her death, it was not publicly confirmed that they were dating.

The pair was most recently photographed together in March 2026 at Los Angeles International Airport.

Hickerson spoke to TMZ in May, at the time of Panettiere’s memoir release, praising the actress for her memoir and acknowledging his abuse.

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“I got arrested for, you know, abusing her, and I wouldn’t blame her friends for being p---ed off at me,” he told the outlet. “You never lay hands on a woman, bottom line,” he added.

The interview was, at times, bizarre, and included references to his friendship with Shia LaBeouf, who was sued by FKA Twigs for sexual battery, assault, and emotional distress in 2020.

Hickerson said his ex-girlfriend was exceptionally talented. “I would be an idiot to not walk away from her and let her flourish in her career,” Hickerson said, pausing. “We probably wouldn’t be good together,” he continued. “I’d like to see what she’s going to do with the next 30 years of her career.”

He said Panettiere would always “hold a special place” in his heart and that “everyone should read” her memoir.

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Meera NavlakhaEntertainment Reporter

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