Just over two weeks after Jansen Panettiere's death, his sister, Hayden Panettiere, wore a jacket that he designed as she attended his memorial with ex, Brian Hickerson.
Hayden Panettiere was photographed arriving at Palisades Presbyterian Church in her hometown of Palisades, New York on March 8 for a memorial service in honor of her late brother, Jansen Panettiere. Jansen passed away in mid-February, and his loved ones gathered for the Celebration of Life service less than one month later. Hayden was dressed in an all black outfit, paired with a colorful bomber jacket, which was actually designed by Jansen, who was an artist. She was joined by family members, as well as her on/off boyfriend, Brian Hickerson.
Hayden and Brian started dating in 2018 after she ended her years-long, on-off relationship with Wladimir Klitschko, who she was previously engaged to and has a daughter with. The actress’ relationship with Brian has been turbulent, but they’ve remained friends since splitting in 2020. Brian was arrested and charged with domestic violence after being accused of hitting Hayden, leaving her with red marks.
Brian found himself in the midst of legal trouble once again after another alleged domestic dispute with Hayden in Feb. 2020. The two split, and that July, Brian was charged with eight counts of domestic violence and assault for incidents in 2019 and 2020. Hayden was granted a protective order against her ex. Weeks later, a warrant was put out for Brian’s arrest after he was accused of “influencing or intimidating a witness” (Hayden). He turned himself into police and was released on bond. In April 2021, Brian was sentenced to 45 days in jail for two of the felony counts he was charged with, while the other six counts were dismissed. His subsequent prison sentence for the witness intimidation charges was suspended due to the assault sentencing.
Once Brian finished his jail sentence in the summer of 2021, Hayden started spending time with him again, and he confirmed that they were working on their friendship. However, in March 2022. Brian was involved in an altercation in Los Angeles. Hayden was knocked to the ground while trying to break up the fight, but her rep confirmed that she was unharmed in the incident. Hayden has remained friends with Brian ever since, and he was clearly a support system for her at the March 8 memorial.
Jansen Panettiere died at the age of 28 from an enlarged heart. Hayden has been in the midst of a press tour for her movie Scream 6 in the aftermath of her brother’s death. While she has not spoken much about the private family matter, she did accept condolences from Michael Strahan during a Good Morning America interview earlier this week. “He’s right here with me,” Hayden said of her brother during the interview.
