After the South Carolina-bred aspiring actor was arrested on a domestic violence charge in May 2019 (he pleaded not guilty to one count of felony domestic violence later that month; the case

After the South Carolina-bred aspiring actor was arrested on a domestic violence charge in May 2019 (he pleaded not guilty to one count of felony domestic violence later that month; the case was dismissed in September 2019) and February 2020 (he reportedly pleaded not guilty to that charge that April), Panettiere made the move to obtain a restraining order last July. 

Two days later, Hickerson was arrested. He was eventually sentenced to 45 days in county jail, plus four years of formal probation, after pleading no contest to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend, a spokesperson for the L.A. District Attorney's Office told E! News at the time.

"After suffering for years as the victim of psychological, emotional and severe physical abuse, Hayden Panettiere has begun the process of taking back her life," her attorney Alan Jackson said in a statement released as news broke of Hickerson's July 2020 arrest. "Hayden has found the strength and courage to share the truth about her abuse and her abuser, and she intends to assist the prosecution to see that justice is served. As a survivor, she recognizes that her arduous journey of healing has just begun."