GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Brian Hickerson, the on-and-off boyfriend of actress Hayden Panettiere, along with his brother Zach Hickerson, were present at the South Carolina apartment where Panettiere was found deceased over the weekend. According to a police report released on Tuesday, a Greenville police officer was informed of the situation upon arrival and observed paramedics administering CPR to an unresponsive woman.

The report indicated that the woman, later identified as Panettiere, showed no apparent physical reasons for her unresponsiveness. Despite the efforts of emergency personnel, she was pronounced dead at 2:31 p.m. on Sunday. The cause of her death has yet to be determined, and an autopsy revealed no signs of trauma. Additionally, police reported no indications of foul play in the incident.

Panettiere, once a prominent child star, gained fame through her roles in television shows such as Heroes and Nashville. She struggled with issues surrounding alcohol addiction and depression, particularly following the birth of her daughter, Kaya, with former Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko in 2014. Panettiere was set to celebrate her 37th birthday on the Friday prior to her death.

The relationship between Panettiere and Brian Hickerson was fraught with turmoil, including allegations of physical abuse. In 2020, Hickerson faced multiple felony abuse charges. He ultimately pleaded no contest to two counts of injuring a spouse or partner and served a brief jail sentence. As part of his sentencing, he was required to complete four years of probation and attend anger management and Alcoholics Anonymous sessions. Recently, Hickerson requested a reduction of his conviction to misdemeanors, but a Los Angeles judge denied this request.

In her memoir, This Is Me, which was published in May, Panettiere expressed her hopes that Hickerson’s time in jail would lead to meaningful change. She confided her desire for him to acknowledge his wrongs and grow from his experiences without being profoundly traumatized. Their relationship reportedly began at a restaurant in West Hollywood in 2018, where she was drawn to Hickerson’s "charming smile."

The police report concerning Panettiere’s death included significant redactions. The initial conversation with Zach Hickerson revealed that he identified the unresponsive woman as his brother's girlfriend. Zach appeared highly emotional during the emergency efforts, while Brian displayed a delayed emotional response, becoming more visibly affected only after Panettiere was declared deceased.

The report further details that, after the incident, the officers escorted the Hickerson brothers out of the apartment and had an in-depth conversation with Brian, the specifics of which were redacted. Additionally, details regarding the medications Panettiere was taking at the time were also redacted.

Panettiere was vocal about her struggles with addiction and mental health throughout her life. In her memoir, she disclosed the lasting scars from her early career in the spotlight and discussed her battle with alcohol addiction and postpartum depression. After Kaya’s birth, her daughter lived primarily with Klitschko in Ukraine from the age of two, as Panettiere grappled with her challenges. She clarified in interviews that her decision to have Kaya live with her father was not a matter of abandonment but rather a choice made for the child's well-being while she sought treatment.

Born to Skip Panettiere, a former New York City firefighter, and Lesley Vogel, a former soap opera actress, Panettiere began her career in commercials and soap operas. She gained significant recognition playing Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light. Reflecting on her early performances in her memoir, she noted the difficulties her character faced and how that shaped her understanding of fame and catastrophe.

Following her role in Heroes, which debuted in 2006, Panettiere won three Teen Choice Awards and even received a Grammy nomination for a children’s spoken word album. She later starred as a talented country singer in Nashville, garnering further acclaim for her performances, which included original songs that reached country music charts.