On Sunday, August 16, first responders were called to the Greenville, South Carolina complex where Hayden Panettiere was found by her boyfriend’s brother, Zach Hickerson. In the days since the “Nashville” star’s tragic passing, aged 36, details have emerged about her death and her relationship with her on-again, off-again partner, Brian Hickerson, who was in the apartment with her.
Hayden Panettiere’s Neighbor Speaks Out
One of Panettiere’s neighbors, Mia Terrazzas, has been speaking to the media about Brian. She revealed she had called 911 “half a dozen times to report disturbances in Hayden’s apartment in West Hollywood,” Inside Edition reports.
On Wednesday, August 19, Terrazzas spoke to Inside Edition and noted differences in the former child star’s behavior, saying she was a “bright light” when she was on her own, but appeared “subdued” and “almost like a different person” around Hickerman.
Hickerson was arrested in 2020 for an alleged assault on Panettiere. Inside Edition reports that he was jailed for 45 days in 2021 for “punching” Panettiere and that he “was banned from the apartment complex” where she lived. Terrazzas reflected on a heartbreaking incident involving Panettiere. “I saw her leaving on a gurney. Brian was right next to her, and I asked her if she was OK, and it looked to me that she had suffered some type of trauma that looked to be battering,” she said. “It was clear she was terrified.”
Terrazas also gave an interview to TMZ, telling the outlet that posters were put up in August 2025 urging residents to “call 911 immediately” if they saw Hickerson on their property. TMZ reports that the “warning poster with his photo went up after a string of complaints about his alleged behavior.” The homeowner’s association took it down a week later.
Hayden Panettiere’s Relationship with Brian Hickerson
Panettiere’s friends and family wanted him out of her life. Panettiere’s estranged mother, Lesley Vogel, has made a scathing statement about Hickerson and the impact he had on her daughter’s life. However, she also faces criticism for how she worded her statement about the late actress.
Many of Panettiere’s friends were seemingly unaware that she had rekindled her relationship with Hickerson. A source told Page Six, “If Brian was back in her life, then it was something she was hiding because she wasn’t speaking about it with many of her friends. If you’ve gone through some dark times with people, and spoken about it, then there can be shame if you get back together with that same person. So maybe that was why she hadn’t mentioned it to us.”
No official cause of death has been made public as the Greenville County Coroner’s Office awaits the results of a toxicology report, but Panettiere’s remains have been released to a funeral home. The coroner also made a statement about the circumstances surrounding the actress’s passing. “First responders and Emergency Medical Services arrived on scene and located a female in cardiac arrest,” the statement reads, People reports. “EMS personnel initiated advanced cardiac life support measures; however, resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful, and the individual was pronounced deceased at 2:32 PM.”
The statement also reveals that the autopsy found “no signs of trauma were discovered that would have contributed to the death.”
