Police Responded To Domestic Dispute At Dolly Parton’s Home Just Over A Month Before She Passed Away

On August 25, 2026, Dolly Parton sadly passed away at 80-years-old in Nashville Tennessee. Dolly had been dealing with undisclosed health issues for the last year or so, and she previously shared that she was having issues with severe kidney stones. Dolly’s reps confirmed she sadly died following a “brief battle with cancer,” though the specific kind was not revealed.

Since then, there’s been quite bit of drama with her nephew, Bryan Seaver, who was her former head of security and is now in a legal dispute with her estate. There’s a whole lot to it, you can read more about it HERE, but it sounds like there’s been some drama with Bryan’s sister, Rebecca Seaver, as well.

In Touch reports that just a little over a month before Dolly’s passing, on the morning of July 13th, police were called to her Dolly’s to investigate a domestic violence dispute. Dolly’s home was in Brentwood, Tennessee, just outside of Nashville, and Officer Peter Spain responded to investigate a report of assault, according to the report they obtained.

Rebecca’s mother is Dolly’s younger sister Cassie, and Rebecca is also the director of the Dolly Parton Archive and executive director of the Life of Many Colors Museum.

Keegan Seaver, Rebecca’s nephew (it’s unclear if he is Bryan’s son or not), claimed that his aunt Rebecca had “struck him with her open hands” following a “verbal confrontation”:

“Had struck him with her open hands about his body several times which stemmed from a verbal confrontation he had with Ms. Seaver’s coworker, Ms. Andrea Abernathy, earlier in the day.”

Keegan, who is 21, was not injured, and Rebecca who is 40, admitted that there was a confrontation, according to Officer Spain:

“Admitted that she did confront her nephew regarding his behavior towards Ms. Abernathy. She claimed she made no physical contact with him other than when he placed his hand in her face in an attempt to provoke her, so she lightly smacked his hand out of her face.”

Ultimately, nothing further came from it, and in Officer Spain’s report, he stated that there wasn’t enough evidence to “determine a primary aggressor,” and he advised them to separate and consult with their employer to solve the solution:

“Due to the lack of evidence and contradicting statements from both parties, I didn’t believe there was sufficient evidence to determine a primary aggressor or that an assault even occurred. I advised both parties to separate and to consult with their supervisors/employers to help create a solution to keep this situation from escalating.”

It’s unclear what dispute was over or anything of that nature, but it’s unfortunate anything like this was going on in Dolly’s home when I have to imagine she wasn’t feeling great.

Bryan Seaver was Dolly’s head of security for 20 years, and he was the family member who Dolly had told for many years she wanted to announce her death to the world, which he did. He was still employed as the head of security when this took place, but it sounds like he wasn’t directly involved with the situation.

In addition to the domestic violence dispute, In Touch also reports that there were nearly 30 calls to police from Dolly’s residence in the year and a half before her death, with reports of “burglary, panic alarms being set off, a ‘swatting” attempt,’ a welfare check and requests for extra patrols around the time Dolly passed away at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville.”

Thankfully, Dolly is now at peace, and I know she would want her family members to find peace with each other and stick together as they continue to navigate life without her.