CA CA - Melodee Buzzard, 9, Vandenberg Village, 14 Oct 2025

[Eli9]

I was wrong, I was just watching an interview with a private investigator and he mentioned bail and a person.

NP I'm still on my first cup of coffee

 

[Ontario Mom]

I suspect if she'd removed the ankle monitor she wouldn't be free to come and go the way the video appears to show her doing - because LE would be notified and they'd show up.

 

[Lebowski]

i'm sure they can tell whether the ankle monitor is moving around normally for being attached to a person

if this were the movies, ashlee would slip away and they'd find the ankle monitor on the neighbor's dog.

 

[swanniee11]

In the video, after she got out of the car it looked like she was putting a cap back on a pen. Did she have to sign stuff, was this a repo of stuff? IMO

 

[Fromeaster]

As I understand it, her court hearing will be today.

 

[Eli9]

As I understand it, her court hearing will be today.

Yeah, I don't think we were told the time of the hearing but it is scheduled for today.

 

[Megnut]

As I understand it, her court hearing will be today.

I'd really like to see her detained until or unless she can produce Melodee. Hold her in contempt.

Daybell wind blows.

JMO

 

[Eli9]

I'd really like to see her detained until or unless she can produce Melodee. Hold her in contempt.

Daybell wind blows.

JMO

I'm stumped why they haven't produced a warrant to produce Melodee. Is it because they know if they prove abandonment she is looking at only a year in jail or is it because they are not looking at abandonment and looking at a homicide charge?

 

[Megnut]

I'm stumped why they haven't produced a warrant to produce Melodee. Is it because they know if they prove abandonment she is looking at only a year in jail or is it because they are not looking at abandonment and looking at a homicide charge?

It almost has to be the latter.

Because she's easily guilty of abandonment. She's been seen. Melodee has not. Her location is unknown and as her primary parent/carer, once a wellness check is raised, you can't just not answer to it!!!!

Thinking of the GannonStauch case, I wonder if Melodee received severe injuries in the house (hidden by the hoodie). Backing into the garage, we saw that in that case too. Child was brought back home, already injured, and then murdered horrifically. LE knew it was no ordinary missing person case early on, never let on publicly, until the stepmom was arrested.

Unless Ashlee stumped produces Melodee, which I don't see happening, I fear the worst. I suspect it's the same direction LE is looking. As they build their case.

I hope today ends with Ashlee in custody, for failure to account for Melodee.

JMO

 

[Eli9]

Oh my. There are some photo's at this link I had not seen before. It's dated 10/23/25

'Uncooperative' mom of missing 9-year-old breaks cover to rent car

The disappearance of a missing girl, 9, has taken a bizarre twist as her mother was spotted emerging from her home after refusing to answer the door for CPS or police.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Jo in Calif]

Both sides confirmed to the judge that they’re ready to move forward with a preliminary hearing on Thursday morning.

That hearing is an opportunity for the defense and prosecution to present evidence before the judge and call witnesses. The judge will then make a ruling on whether he feels there is enough evidence to proceed with the felony charge against Buzzard and move her case forward to trial.

Mother of missing Vandenberg Village girl makes brief court appearance on false imprisonment charge

The mother of a missing 9-year-old girl from Vandenberg Village made her second court appearance Wednesday in connection with the false imprisonment case against her.

www.ksby.com

Mother of missing Vandenberg Village girl makes brief court appearance on false imprisonment charge

The mother of a missing 9-year-old girl from Vandenberg Village made her second court appearance Wednesday in connection with the false imprisonment case against her.

www.ksby.com

 

[blueelephant]

If you look up their house at 550 Mars in Lompoc on Google maps you see a woman and young girl who happened to be walking from the garage to the front door (depending on which street angle you’re at) right when the Google car was photographing their street. I don’t know for sure, but it looks like the people in the photo are Ashlee and Melodee. The photo was taken May 2023. If the woman in the photo is indeed Ashlee, the amount of weight she has lost between then and now is astounding. I wonder if this extreme change in size has to do with drugs or a new relationship, and I wonder if this change in appearance in some way ties in what happened to Melodee.

I am also intrigued by the school situation. Why would Ashlee bother to sign up Melodee for the home study program if she didn’t have her do the work? Seems like if she had Melodee turn in the assignments it would have bought her more time before the school noticed her inactivity and alerted the authorities. Maybe she didn’t think the school would notice? There is something about the timing of all of it that seems so odd to me.

It’s interesting that in the two years since family last had contact with Ashlee and Melodee (I believe Ashlee’s mom said she last had contact about two years ago) is when Ashlee pulled Melodee out of school and lost of ton of weight. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ashlee does these road trips semi frequently with Melodee as a part of a drug ring or something illegal like that, hence the multiple wigs and license plate swaps. Looking at the security clip in the car rental lobby, I personally don’t see a mom who is mad at her daughter, I see someone who is impatient bc she knows she is doing something wrong and wants to get out and on the road. To me she looks at Melodee almost like she is annoyed with whoever is behind the counter. Maybe this is me being way too optimistic and naive, but I wonder if she thought of Melodee as her little sidekick.

I wonder if something went wrong on this particular drug run and somehow Melodee got killed or if Melodee spends time with whoever Ashlee is in business with and that’s where she is right now. I wonder if Ashlee is being completely silent because there are other people involved who have threatened to kill her or Melodee (if she is still alive) if Ashlee says anything.

All of this is total speculation and my brain running wild. This case is so complex, and my heart is aching for this sweet little girl.


One question I have is about child welfare checks. Melodee was in the care of her grandmother in the past when Ashlee was sent to a mental hospital. If someone has a history of their child being taken away from them due to neglect and mental health struggles, is there a system in place for CPS or some other legal entity to check on the child periodically to make sure the caregiver hasn’t relapsed? Seems like in the last couple of years someone would have checked on her welfare.

 

[adot0902]

Is there any chance Ashlee had a mental break and is reliving her childhood trauma? I mean I'm out of thoughts on this one. So I'm left to think of the absolutely ridiculous out of the box thoughts. The traumatic childhood of missing Melodee Buzzard's mother

 

[Ontario Mom]

Both sides confirmed to the judge that they’re ready to move forward with a preliminary hearing on Thursday morning.

That hearing is an opportunity for the defense and prosecution to present evidence before the judge and call witnesses. The judge will then make a ruling on whether he feels there is enough evidence to proceed with the felony charge against Buzzard and move her case forward to trial.

Mother of missing Vandenberg Village girl makes brief court appearance on false imprisonment charge

The mother of a missing 9-year-old girl from Vandenberg Village made her second court appearance Wednesday in connection with the false imprisonment case against her.

www.ksby.com

Mother of missing Vandenberg Village girl makes brief court appearance on false imprisonment charge

The mother of a missing 9-year-old girl from Vandenberg Village made her second court appearance Wednesday in connection with the false imprisonment case against her.

www.ksby.com

Based on what's publicly known, this seems like a really weak case.

jmo

 

[Mauig’ma]

Based on what's publicly known, this seems like a really weak case.

jmo

I still don’t understand why they can’t charge her for not producing Melodee

 

[Beans]

The longer this goes on, and the more people connected with the case say, the more I think this is purely about custodial issues, and that Ashlee is being advised by a parental rights / anti-CPS / homeschooling organisation. This situation would be right in their wheelhouse, especially the ones that have an interest in campaigning against the grandparents rights to petition for visitation in specific circumstances, some of which might apply to this family's situation. This feels far more political than it does sinister.

 

[Lebowski]

not a lawyer, but it strikes me they should charge her with child abandonment. it seems like the case is there (child disappeared + caregiver refuses to say where she is + evidence the caregiver intentionally left the child elsewhere), and ashlee's response would tell us whether melodee is still alive.

if melodee's alive, and ashlee doesn't produce her, she probably not only goes to prison but loses custody for good. but if she does produce her, she beats the charge (if she can show melodee was in the care of a competent adult), and stands a less bad chance of keeping custody. so if melodee's alive, it's a no-brainer (assuming ashlee is rational...) that ashlee reveals where melodee is.

otoh, if melodee is no longer alive, there is no custody to lose, and revealing the location of her daughter's remains trades an abandonment conviction for a likely murder conviction.

in any case, whatever LE is thinking, they are probably in the mode of "build the best case you can, before you pull the trigger".

 

[Eli9]

not a lawyer, but it strikes me they should charge her with child abandonment. it seems like the case is there (child disappeared + caregiver refuses to say where she is + evidence the caregiver intentionally left the child elsewhere), and ashlee's response would tell us whether melodee is still alive.

if melodee's alive, and ashlee doesn't produce her, she probably not only goes to prison but loses custody for good. but if she does produce her, she beats the charge (if she can show melodee was in the care of a competent adult), and stands a less bad chance of keeping custody. so if melodee's alive, it's a no-brainer (assuming ashlee is rational...) that ashlee reveals where melodee is.

otoh, if melodee is no longer alive, there is no custody to lose, and revealing the location of her daughter's remains trades an abandonment conviction for a likely murder conviction.

in any case, whatever LE is thinking, they are probably in the mode of "build the best case you can, before you pull the trigger".

IMO it's because Ashlee won't give up a living Melodee location for fear of losing her child and her parental rights. Also Ashlee won't give up a non-living Melodee location for fear of losing her freedom on a likely murder charge.

Also abandonment in a living child situation doesn't really carry much in the form of a sentence. It's like a year sentence and a fine.

 

[Lebowski]

but the abandonment conviction guarantees she loses custody for good, whereas if she beats the charge by producing a live melodee, it's only likely she loses custody, and possibly only temporarily

 

[Lebowski]

although, keeping or regaining custody might be conditionined on getting mental health treatment, and patients with paranoia are notoriously resistant to treatment. they have a hard time trusting the therapist or the diagnosis enough for it to go anywhere. they pigeonhole all of it according to their delusions.