{"id":258951,"date":"2026-08-22T00:56:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T00:56:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/22\/brian-hickerson-accused-of-drug-use-by-prosecutor-3-days-before-hayden-panettieres-death-report\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T00:56:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T00:56:19","slug":"brian-hickerson-accused-of-drug-use-by-prosecutor-3-days-before-hayden-panettieres-death-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/22\/brian-hickerson-accused-of-drug-use-by-prosecutor-3-days-before-hayden-panettieres-death-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Brian Hickerson Accused of Drug Use by Prosecutor 3 Days Before Hayden Panettiere\u2019s Death: Report"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Hayden Panettiere<\/strong><\/a>\u2018s ex Brian Hickerson<\/strong> was reportedly accused of drug use three days before the actress\u2019 unexpected death at 36.<\/p>\n

According to court records obtained by People<\/em><\/a> on Friday, August 21, prosecutors accused Hickerson, 37, of continued drug use amid his efforts to expunge his domestic violence convictions. Neither Hickerson nor his attorney attended the hearing.<\/p>\n

During the hearing that occurred on August 13, prosecutors argued that Hickerson\u2019s petition to expunge his two felony counts of corporal injury to a spouse\/cohabitant should be denied. (Hickerson was convicted in 2021 after pleading no contest in a domestic violence case involving Panettiere. He was sentenced to 45 days in jail, for which he spent 13 days behind bars, four years of formal probation, 52 domestic violence classes and a five-year protective order. Hickerson also had to pay $500 in restitution.)<\/p>\n

At the hearing last week, a prosecutor argued that Hickerson appeared \u201cquite high on what appears to be a stimulant,\u201d claiming he was \u201cvery clearly not sober\u201d during a recent interview, per the outlet. The prosecutor alleged that Hickerson spoke \u201cfor 15 minutes about the abuse that\u2019s been documented in his victim\u2019s<\/a> bestselling book, and he makes several admissions about that.\u201d (Hickerson was interviewed by TMZ in May following the release of Panettiere\u2019s memoir<\/a>, This Is Me: A Reckoning<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

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\n Related: <\/span>Hayden Panettiere’s Ex Brian Hickerson ‘Inserted Himself’ Back Into Her Life<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tHayden Panettiere\u2018s on-off boyfriend Brian Hickerson found himself back in the actress\u2019 life before her shocking death. \u201cBrian was with her at the time of her death,\u201d the source exclusively shared with Us. \u201cHe had inserted himself into her life and was surveilling her.\u201d According to a Greenville City Police Department incident report obtained by [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The prosecutor also stated that Hickerson \u201cwas high and arrested at a local restaurant in West Hollywood\u201d in August 2025.<\/p>\n

Us<\/em> confirmed that Hickerson was arrested twice within a matter of days, the first time at a bar on August 2, 2025, and again on August 6, 2025. Records show that he was cuffed at 5:14 p.m. on August 2, booked at 5:45 p.m. and released at 3:17 a.m. the following morning. On August 6, he was arrested just before 8 a.m., booked at 9:12 a.m. and released later that evening.<\/p>\n

The Los Angeles Sheriff\u2019s Department confirmed to Us<\/em> that charges for both arrests were \u201cunder the influence of a controlled substance.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to records viewed by Us<\/em>, Hickerson did have a hearing on August 13, which was three days before Panettiere\u2019s death. His expungement request was ultimately denied by a judge<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Following the hearing last week, the L.A. County D.A.\u2019s Office told People<\/em> in a statement that prosecutors opposed Hickerson\u2019s petition \u201cbased on the individual\u2019s Aug. 2, 2025, arrest\u201d and what they characterized as his \u201ccontinued demonstrable drug use.\u201d<\/p>\n

Us<\/em> has reached out to Hickerson\u2019s attorney and the prosecutor in the case for comment.<\/p>\n

Panettiere died on Sunday, August 16. She was found unresponsive at a residence in South Carolina by Brian and his brother, Zach Hickerson<\/strong>. Emergency services arrived at the scene<\/a> to perform \u201cadvanced cardiac life support measures,\u201d but the actress was pronounced dead that afternoon.<\/p>\n

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\n Related: <\/span>Why Hayden Panettiere Hired Security When Ex Brian Hickerson Returned<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tHayden Panettiere felt compelled to set firm boundaries with ex-boyfriend Brian Hickerson in the months before her death, including taking steps to protect herself. \u201cShe helped him from time to time because he made her feel guilty, claiming he was trying to turn his life around, but couldn\u2019t because she put him in jail,\u201d a [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

An autopsy was completed and found \u201cno signs of trauma that would have contributed\u201d to Panettiere\u2019s death, per the coroner\u2019s office. The cause and manner of her death \u201cremain pending further investigation and the completion of additional studies.\u201d<\/p>\n

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