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South Carolina Police Rule Panettiere's Death Accidental
· Confirmed
In Short: South Carolina police have concluded their investigation into the death of actress Hayden Panettiere, ruling it accidental.
South Carolina police announced Wednesday that the death of actress Hayden Panettiere has been ruled accidental.
Emergency responders were called to a residence in Greenville, South Carolina, on Aug. 16, where they found Panettiere, 36, unresponsive.
The Greenville County Coroner's Office confirmed that Panettiere died from an accidental drug overdose involving fentanyl, 4-ANPP, Alprazolam, Methocarbamol, and Quetiapine.
Panettiere's on-again, off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson and his brother Zach were at the scene of her death, according to a police report.
In a memoir published in May, Panettiere acknowledged being addicted to alcohol and suffering from postpartum depression after her daughter's birth in 2014.
A California court granted Panettiere's ex-fiance, former boxer Wladimir Klitschko, legal status to protect her property for their 11-year-old daughter, who is her sole heir.
The coroner's report obtained by The Associated Press last month stated that Panettiere had been in rehab just weeks before her death.
Panettiere's father told investigators that she had plans to visit her daughter in Ukraine days after her death.
Paramedics and police found Panettiere in cardiac arrest, according to the coroner’s office.
The Greenville County Coroner’s Office ruled Panettiere’s death an accident last month, but investigators had been looking into whether she obtained illicit and possibly counterfeit drugs from a dealer in Southern California.
What this adds
South Carolina police have previously closed their investigation into Panettiere's death, ruling it accidental.
Background
South Carolina police have closed their investigation into the death of actress Hayden Panettiere, ruling it accidental.
South Carolina police have closed their investigation into the accidental overdose death of actress Hayden Panettiere.
What's confirmed
- October 28, 2026 / 3:43 PM EDT / CBS News The death of Hayden Panettiere has been ruled accidental, South Caroline police announced Wednesday.
- Emergency responders were called to a residence where Panettiere, 36, had been staying in Greenville, South Carolina, on the afternoon of Aug. 16.
- Greenville Police Department said the investigation into Panettiere's death has been concluded "based on the Medical Examiner's determination and the findings of the investigation," and the actor's death was officially ruled accidental.
- Authorities, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, were investigating the circumstances of Panettiere's death.
- Despite "advanced cardiac life support measures," she was pronounced dead there, the Greenville County Coroner's Office said.' Panettiere's on-again, off-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson and his brother Zach were at the scene of her death, according to a police report obtained by CBS News.
- Last month, a South Carolina coroner confirmed Panettiere died from an accidental drug overdose that included fentanyl.
- Panettiere, who starred in the TV series "Heroes" and "Nashville," was pronounced dead in an apartment in Greenville on Aug. 16 at age 36 after paramedics found her unresponsive.
- In "This Is Me: A Reckoning," a memoir that was published in May, Panettiere acknowledged being addicted to alcohol and having postpartum depression after her daughter's birth in 2014.
- RELATED STORY | Hayden Panettiere’s death was accidental and involved fentanyl, coroner says A coroner's report obtained by The Associated Press last month said her death was from an accidental overdose of several drugs, including fentanyl, and she had been in rehab just weeks before.
- In a petition to a California court last month, Panettiere's ex-fiance, former boxer Wladimir Klitschko, said some of her property had been taken by federal law enforcement agents investigating her death and by an unnamed nonrelative looking to sell it.
- RELATED STORY | Hayden Panettiere appeared to suffer cardiac arrest after suspected overdose The California court granted Klitschko legal status this month to protect Panettiere's property for their 11-year-old daughter, who is her sole heir.
- Panettiere's father told investigators that at the time of her death, she had plans to visit her daughter in Ukraine days later.
What's still developing
- "has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances."
- FILE - Hayden Panettiere attends the world premiere of "Scream VI" at AMC Lincoln Square on March 6, 2023, in New York.