Hayden Panettiere’s death has officially been ruled accidental, with police closing their investigation nearly two months after the actress was found unresponsive at 36.
The Heroes and Nashville star died at an apartment in Greenville, South Carolina, on August 16. Authorities previously said there were “no signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances.”
The Greenville Police Department has now confirmed the outcome in a statement: “Based on the (coroner’s office’s) determination and the findings of the investigation, Hayden Panettiere’s death has been ruled accidental. The Greenville Police Department has concluded its investigation.”
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A coroner’s report said Panettiere died from the toxic effects of fentanyl, 4-ANPP, alprazolam, methocarbamol and quetiapine. An autopsy found no signs of trauma.
According to reports, her on-off boyfriend Brian Hickerson and his brother, Zack, found her unconscious on a sofa. They reportedly tried to wake her and administered two doses of Narcan before calling emergency services, but she was pronounced dead at the scene.
Following her death, her spokesperson urged the public to wait for verified findings, saying: “Recent reports attributed to unnamed sources are unverified hearsay and have attributed to conflicting information that continues to circulate.”
Meanwhile, Panettiere’s daughter, Kaya, 11, is at the center of legal steps involving her late mother’s estate.
Her father, former boxer Wladimir Klitschko, filed a petition seeking temporary guardianship of Kaya’s estate to manage the assets she inherited.
The legal filing states that Klitschko wants to ensure he “may receive, manage and hold, on Kaya’s behalf, the assets to which Kaya is entitled from Hayden’s probate estate.”
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Panettiere’s death has left both a family grieving and difficult practical matters to resolve.
