Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - BIZARRE DISAPPEARANCE OF GIRL MELODEE, 9, FAMILY WORRIED

Episode Date: October 20, 2025

Santa Barbara sheriffs have been desperately searching for now 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard for quite some time.  The only photo authorities have of Melodee is over 2 years old, as the little girl is ‘homeschooled’ in Vandenberg Village, just north of Lompoc. Santa Barbara sheriffs have been desperately searching for now 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard for quite some time.  The only photo authorities have of Melodee is over two years old, as the little girl is ‘homeschooled’ in Vandenberg Village, just north of Lompoc.California. Santa Barbara Sheriff's deputies attempt a welfare check but find no one at Ashlee Buzzard’s. home. Officers return the next day, finally making contact with Melodee’s mom. Melodee is not at home, and according to the Sheriff’s office, Buzzard cannot provide a “clear explanation” of Melodee’s whereabouts. Melodee is just six months old when her father passes away in a car crash. Melodee is described as a very sweet and loving little girl, who loves spending time with her cousins and flashing her beautiful smile. Ashlee Buzzard raises her daughter on her own and slowly pulls away from family. Melodee’s father’s family hasn’t seen the little girl in years. Anyone with information is asked to call Santa Barbara Sheriffs at 805-681-4150. Joining Nancy Grace today: Lizabeth Meza - Aunt of Melodee Buzzard  Lauren Johnson-Norris - Defense Attorney specializing in juvenile, and CPS cases in Orange County, California), Founder of Johnson Criminal Law Group Dr. Bethany Marshall -  Psychoanalyst, Author: "Deal Breaker," and featured in hit show "Paris in Love" on Peacock; Instagram & TikTok: drbethanymarshall, X: @DrBethanyLive Bill Garcia - Owner of Bill Garcia Investigative Services, Facebook: Bill Garcia Investigative Services, Instagram @BGISInternational Rhonda Dequier - Founder, Missing In Action Network, an advocacy program for the families of missing persons Alexis Tereszcuk - Crimeonline.com Investigative Reporter; Sydney Sumner - Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'   Raquel Zick - PIO for the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office in California  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. The bizarre disappearance of a little girl, Melody, just nine years old. Melody has not been seen in a year, but only just reported missing. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. I want to thank you for being with us. Little Melody Buzzard, just nine years old, lived a quiet life in Santa Barbara with her mother until one day she simply vanished.

Joining us tonight, an all-star panel to make sense of what we know about missing Melody, nine years old. Control room, yes, show me her photo. Look at this gorgeous little girl. Look at that smile. Look at that beautiful curly hair. How could she be gone a year and just reach that. reported missing or was she? Before I go to our panel, I want to go to a special guest joining us tonight. It's Elizabeth Messa. This is Melody's aunt. Ms. Messa, thank you so much for

being with us. Yes, thank you so much for having me. I'm so grateful that someone in Melody's family is speaking out on her behalf. We, there she is. I recognize that outfit. That's a Dorothy outfit from Wizard of Oz. Must be a little Halloween or a costume party of some sort. Look at this little girl, guys. Have you seen her? Tip line 805-681-4-1-5-1-5-8-1-5.

Repeat, 805-681-4-1-5-0. Straight back out to Elizabeth Messa, joining us. This is Melody's aunt. Miss Messa, how can this be? I don't understand how a child can not be seen for a year and only just being reported missing. But is that accurate? Isn't it true Melody was homeschooled? Yes. When I, we found out last Tuesday, the investigator reached out and was asking questions and, you know, about her whereabouts. So to hear that she was missing was completely mind-blowing. And to find out she was

homeschooled by the mom. And the last time anybody seen her was a year. And then it turned out to be two months ago was the last time that the school had seen her. So the timeline was very sketchy. And mom is not giving any information at all. speaking of mom are you or is anyone within the family in touch with the mom so she answered the door for my niece korena which is melody's sister on her dead side she opened the door and answered very little questions but as far as anybody else No, she will not answer anybody. She will not answer the door.

She will not answer questions. Now, what do you mean she answered the door, but she wouldn't answer question? I know. It sounds weird, Nancy, but she stood there, very stoic with a very stone look on her face. And my niece asked her, where's Malady, if she's okay? And she said, why now? Why now? and my niece said well we didn't we couldn't get a hold of you we had no address we had no phone number

and she said well there's a reason for that and my niece just kept asking her is malady okay are you okay and she said i hope you and your kids are well and she shut the door so you got nothing out of her guys we're showing you shots of melody right now um she's been missing we don't know how long We're not sure she actually is missing, but I do know this. Again, guys with me, family member Elizabeth Mesa joining us. This is her aunt. A staffer at her elementary school realized that Melody had not been there. Well, she's homeschooled, but they have these little programs that the homeschooled

children take part in, right? And so the school doesn't see her every day like you would a school enroll, a child enrolled in regular school. But when Melody had missed several of these get-togethers with homeschooled children, you know, like field trips to the planetarium or the zoo, the staffers at the elementary school got concerned. And that is when it all came bubbling up. So to you, Ms. Mesa, again, thank you for being with us because we've tried really hard

to get in touch with family members. When did you first realize Melody was missing? So we first realized or found out last Tuesday, that was the 14th, when the CWS investigator called me asking if I know her whereabouts. And I had asked him, is my niece okay? And he told me, I can't answer that because it's an open investigation. And he said, we're just looking for her whereabouts. And I gave him all the information that I knew and I let him know that.

The last time physically we've seen her, the family was about four and a half years ago when her mom brought her to my mother-in-law's house for us to see her. And at that time, Nancy, she was acting very strange. She had shaved her head down. I mean, she had like a buzzcat and she had a hoodie on. The mom Ashley did. And she was acting very strange. And my mother-in-law had told her, if you don't want to leave her here, she could stay here

because she was playing with my kids. and Ashley looked and she said, I can't do this. And she grabbed her and they left. And that was the last time that we've seen her. And isn't it true, Ms. Mesa, you guys have a really big family, a big loving family. And everybody wants to take care of Melody, but the mom wouldn't let you. Yes, that's correct. My husband, his family is.

very large, I mean, and so loving and opening. And Karina is her sister, like I said, on her dad's side. Her dad passed away nine years ago in a tragic motorcycle accident. And she's always one of a relationship with her sister. Yes, my brother-in-law, Rubio. Melody's dad, Rubiel, died in a motorcycle crash, and that was 2016. So it's just her. and the mom now was uh melody always homeschooled well we we just found that out nancy we had no

contact with her the last like i said the last time we were informed that she was removed from the mother's care and we all tried to you know like get her you know we should be with me she could be with you know whoever they would allow her to be and then she was finally able to be place with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law and they had her for quite some time. I don't know exactly how long. And then the state came back and they removed her and they told us that she was going to be adopted by the family that had had her before or something like. It was just so off. They wouldn't give information either. And then we didn't hear from her again. But she was not adopted. Hold on just a moment. Joining me right now is Sidney Sumner,

Stories investigative reporter. Now, let me understand, Sidney, she was going to certain classes at the elementary school, but I also have, and that would be Buena Vista, but I also have information that she had been homeschooled, but would go to optional in-person classes and activities. Can you clear it up very quickly, Sydney? Right. So this is all from the same school district, the Longtok Unified School District. So Melody was enrolled at Buena Vista Elementary, for a year, first grade, and then the year after that, she was then enrolled in this independent study, a homeschool program through the Mission Valley Independent Study Program. So this is backed by the school district, and this is what she's been in for the last two years.

So she was enrolled two years ago for the 24 to 25 school year, and that newest sighting that we've just heard about, she re-enrolled in that program in August, and an administrator who enrolled her in that program again saw Melody in August when they enrolled for this homeschool program. So if the administrator saw Melody at the beginning of August, we've now narrowed the gap to August, September, October, three months, three months. But according to others, she has not been seen by anyone else for a year, but she did show up according to the school. administrator, but straight back out to Melody's aunt, Elizabeth Mesa. What was Melody's demeanor when you last saw her?

All the time we seen her, she was so happy, she was playful, she was just so excited to be around family, and she was just smiling and just so excited. It was great to have her around, and her beautiful smile just lit up the room, and she was just, You know, a happy, loving child. Now, we've been told that Melody was kind of passed off to live with a friend, but no one can't confirm whether that's true or not. Do you know anything about that, Ms. Mesa? Yeah, that's what we were told, that she was with a friend,

but we can't get any information on what friend. You know, we just, the mom didn't have much friends when I knew her. When she was living with my mother-in-law, she never met. mentioned any friends. It was, she had a daughter that was taken away and given to the father. And, I mean, she just had us. And that was it. She has a mom. Wait, are you telling me Melody's mother has had another child taken away? Yes. Uh-huh. A daughter, another daughter was taken away and given to the father to be raised. Okay. So was she taken, the other child taken away by the state or

was she taken away, just given away to the family? No, to my knowledge from what Ashley had told me when I was talking to her is that the state took her, took her and gave her to the father. She was removed from her custody. Okay. Was that a different dad? Was that Rubiel or a different dad? No, that's a different dad. Yeah, that's a different dad. Gotcha. Because I know Rubio passed away in 2013. 2016. One other question. Is it true that Melody's mom crashed her car with Melody in the car? Yes. Yes, she sure did. And so here's this little girl, alone with a mom, who, according to some sources, intentionally crashed her car with the baby in it. Do you think that car crash was intentional?

Oh, absolutely. Yes, absolutely. She was very erratic and just emotional. And yeah, she she crashed it on purpose. Where is Melody tonight? What is your message if she can hear you, Lisbeth? Melody just want to let her know that we love her. She has a lot of family, aunts, uncles, cousins. grandma, sister that we love her and we just want her home and she is loved and it is okay and we just want her home safe. Melody had no longer attended elementary school but was homeschooled by her mother in Lompoc, California. But concerns escalated when her former school alerted authorities flagging a prolonged and unexplained absence. Tonight, where is this little girl? According to some report, she has not been seen since she was a little over seven years old.

Where is Melody? Please help us find this girl. We just spoke to her aunt, and the news is distressing. This child has been homeschooled through Mission Valley Independent School program. But the problem with that in this case is that she began missing the, uh, Optional visits, the in-person classes and activities. Where is she? Why do the school have to report her missing?

But tonight, where is Melody? Listen. Buena Vista Elementary School alerts authorities. Melody Buzzard has not been seen for some time causing concern among staff. Melody enrolled in a homeschool program that also hosts optional in-person classes and activities. The last time anyone saw Melody at one of those events was more than a year ago. Joining us tonight, a special guest, Raquel Zick, P-I-O public information officer, Santa Barbara County sheriffs. Raquel, thank you for being with us.

Raquel, what's the latest? So what investigators are sharing today is that they've located information that shows that Ashley was with Melody as recently as October 7th, and that they may have driven from the Lompoc area as far as the state of Nebraska. We understand that she had rented a vehicle, a white Chevy Malibu, and we are providing that license plate information to the public in case anybody saw Melody or Ashley together in that vehicle. We do also want to point out that it is a rental car and that it's no longer in Ashley's possession. We know that the trip was from Lompoc to around the Nebraska area. we're not sure, you know, that Melody, where Melody may or may not have been along portions of that trip. But we do know that that's where the trip started, extended to, and then return back to Lompoc.

We are seeing a lot of people that are showing up at the residence, especially people who are kind of concerned, you know, wanting to conduct their own searches and their own investigations. And we really want to encourage the public to just kind of share information with law enforcement as opposed to conducting your own investigation. and just kind of warned that, you know, that some of this stuff could possibly impede our investigation or interfere. And we know that the public is very adamant and passionate about helping to locate Melody. And we very much appreciate that. But we're, again, encouraging people not to have that result in a community-led investigation. Raquel, what is Santa Barbara Sheriff's doing to find Melody?

Detectives did already conduct a thorough search of the family's residence, and that was before we issued the initial press release. So we've already been through the residence. As a result of that search, we are continuing a search for a missing person. This is not a homicide case. The hope and the goal is that we find Melody Alive and that we can ensure her safety. Joining me now an all-star panel to make sense of what we have just learned to. Dr. Bethany Marshall, a psychoanalyst out of L.A. deal breaker. You can see her on Peacock and find her at Dr. Bethany Marshall.com.

Dr. Bethany, here's my concern. If the mom allegedly crashed her car intentionally with the child in it, that's the concern. Why is the child still there? How many times is it going to happen where the child stays in a home where there is a danger and then The child goes missing and we can't find her. I mean, what do you make of it, Dr. Bethany? You know, not only that, but apparently the child was placed in another family, loving family home, relatives homes, but then was taken back out again. And what is that all about?

The fact that a family member knocked on the door and then the mother said, why are you here just now or something's that effect, tells me just how sort of self-referential and self-centered the mother is lost in her own world. It makes me wonder about impulsivity, aggression. To me, Nancy, what is most important in all of this is the mother's lack of empathy towards the missing child. Well, following up on what you're saying, Dr. Bethany Marshall, the aunt and the niece have tried to speak to her. The Santa Barbara sheriffs have tried to speak with her and she won't talk about the child. I mean, come on, Dr. Bethany, you have to tell me to stop talking about the twins.

And that's the way it is with most moms that I know. But when you can't get the mom to say anything about the child, that's a concern. You know, think about what moms do for their kids. Not only do they talk about them, they show pictures of them, they dress them up, they take them to play dates, but they foster relationships between their child and other family members. I always think of that as a primary role of a mother or as a parent, dads too. And so when this little girl is at Grandma's house playing with her cousins and then the mother snatches her and takes her away, this is the mother who either wanted the child all to herself, didn't want to share or didn't want this little girl to give out information to the other kids. Many people, many agencies trying to find out where is Melody. We haven't seen her in over four years due to the mother not allowing the family to see her.

Santa Barbara Sheriff's attempt a welfare check, but find no one at Ashley Buzzard's home on Mars Avenue, Vandenberg Village. Officers returned the next day, finally making contact with Melody's mom. Melody is not at home, and according to sheriffs, Buzzard cannot provide a clear explanation of Melody's whereabouts. Joining me, investigative reporter out of L.A. with crimeonline.com. Alexis, Tereschuk, Alexis, this is giving me. A horrible flashback. That sound you just heard from our friends at K.S.B. White. Listen, Alexis. On November 26th, 2019, police go to Lori Valo's Rexford Townhome to conduct a welfare check on her son, J.J. Valo.

JJ's grandparents, Kay and Larry Woodcock, are concerned, as they have not heard from JJ in months. Valo tells the officers JJ is safe in Arizona, staying with a friend, Melanie Gibbs, who also has a son with autism. The next day, police returned to serve a warrant and discovered that Valo and Chad Daybill moved out and left town. Melanie Gibbs later contacts police to tell them JJ was never with her. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Alexis Tereschuk, you and I lived through

the cult mom, Lori Valo, saga, the debacle, where the children were missing. And I know you recall us following Nate Eaton from IdahoNews.com, chasing Lori Valo to the ends of the earth, trying to find the children at that point. We could see his hand in the picture and he was yelling where the children, where she had followed her to Hawaii. Remember that? And when they first started looking for JJ entirely, they went back the next. They couldn't get a good end. answer. They went back with a warrant the next day and called mom Lori Valo had cleared out. And the children were dead. They had been dead.

And I think that's what everybody is fearing here. Because when the mom and all the cases that you and I've covered, when the parent has lost a child, a child has been taken, they're missing, they immediately call the police. They do everything they can to help find her. They start Facebook pages. They ask anybody that's ever known her to share anything. That is not happening here. Melody's mom is not sharing any information about her. And as her relative said, she's not even answering the door. She won't let people in. Your child was missing. You'd invite people in. You'd say, look, here's her toy. Is there a dog that could, you know, follow her scent somewhere around our house? None of that is happening here. She is not doing anything to share any information

about her daughter. Lori, Nate Eaton, with East Idaho News. Can you tell me where your kids are? Where are your kids? No comment. No comment? They've been missing for four months. You have nothing to say? You're over here in Hawaii? Where are your children?

JJ was not seen again until June 9th of 2020 when he was also found in a shallow grave on the defendant's property. JJ was found wrapped in garbage bags with duct tape around him. He had duct tape around his head. He had duct tape around his arms, taping them into a position like this. That's how the defendant's little boy was found. sound. First, that was from East Idaho News, and that was prosecutor Lindsay A. Blake in her opening statement in the case against cult mom Lori Valo.

Again, joining us an all-star panel in addition to Alexis Tereschuk and Little Melody's aunt. You know, to Rhonda DeCare joining us, you know her well. She's the founder of Missing in Action Network. it's an advocacy program for families of missing people and she has conducted many many searches for missing children Rhonda thank you for being with us it's never good when mommy won't say where the baby is

right isn't we've seen it too many times and other people having to report your child missing never it doesn't ever end up good in this case I'm trying to figure out to Bill Garcia owner Bill Garcia Investigative Services where we need to go with this. Bill, what now? I'd start with a search warrant of Mommy's place. That's the first place I'd start. Well, I happened to be on the ground over the last couple of days trying to get acclimated to the area and to learn any possible leads.

And I did canvas the neighborhood. I spoke to a neighbor who had firsthand experience that's actually seeing the child, she claims within the last 30 days. Law enforcement has that information. They have their security camera footage from that time period as long as others. One thing I found is there's a lot of security cameras in that area. This particular witness to seeing the child has two different security systems. and they actually shine right onto the neighbors on Ashley's property. So my suspicion right now, the most important information is that camera footage

because that would indicate when she was last seen, whether she was seen taken in the vehicle or not. I also learned some other items that were kind of disturbing. For instance, they spent a lot of time at home. No visitors. Apparently, according to this witness, Ashley did not have a vehicle, and the vehicle that was last seen was actually a rental vehicle. So that's another important clue to follow because now law enforcement can get a search warrant for that vehicle

so that they can track GPS as they can with telephones. and license plate reader cameras. There's not really any indication. Bill, got a question for you. You stated that she doesn't have a car and the last car that she did have was a rental car. How long ago was that? That was within the week.

Apparently she returned it on either Thursday or Friday. There's also a possibility it may have been taken and impounded for evidence or to search for evidence, but we don't know when she actually obtained it, but she has not had a vehicle in quite some time according to a neighbor. Well, right there, that's a very strong lead, Bill Garcia, because unlike, you know, a lot of cars, we never know if there's a nav system in them, a satellite system.

But if you've got a rental car, then we know there's going to be a nav system in there. I'm just trying to figure out about this. you said, a potential siding within the last 30 days. Tell me about that. Basically, the witness is a very close neighbor. She didn't want to go on camera. She didn't want to have her name used, but she has been in contact with law enforcement. She says some disturbing things. For instance, when Ashley would come out of the house to go to the garage, because there is no interior door from the house into the garage. Ashley would come out the front door, she would lock the security door behind her, go into the garage, do whatever she was going

to do the laundry or what have you, and then walk back into the house having to unlock the door, indicating that the child was actually in the house the entire time. And this happens numerous times. Other things that were interesting is no yelling, no loud noises, no visitors had their food or the groceries delivered by Walmart directly to the home. What concerns me the most right now is that law enforcement needs to be on top of these devices to be able to track where she has been. Since she didn't have her own vehicle, there's going to be limited times when she had a rental vehicle, so it will be somewhat easier to track those periods as well as her telephone if she had it active or with her. Yesterday, when I tried to contact Ashley,

the neighbor who I had been talking to extensively said, oh, she's there. And as I walk up to the house, I noticed that the garage door was open. The neighbor said that garage doors have been opened for the last three days. There's numerous boxes throughout the garage that appear to be open and disarray, according to the neighbor that was searched by law enforcement. But she has not been seen in the last three days, and this is by a neighbor that I believe is keeping a close eye on the situation. So without getting a close eye on the situation. So without getting some kind of direct indication from Ashley

of where Melody should be. It's going to be much more difficult. But again, law enforcement needs to get on top of those devices and get some kind of a timeline. Bill, question, you stated that there is a potential siding in the last three days.

Is that what you said? 30 days in the last 30 days. 30, 0. Okay, I heard 30 on one occasion and three on another occasion. When she was spotted 30 days ago, are we sure it was her? What was she doing? And where was she? She would have been in the front yard, according to the neighbor.

The neighbor is not sure if they actually left in the rental vehicle, but they would have had a vehicle, not unsure if it was that same rental vehicle or a different one. So she was seen in the front yard. According to this neighbor, the child was rarely seen outdoors when she was. She was with her mother. She didn't seem to play with any of the neighborhood kids. Didn't seem to have any kind of reaction with anybody outside of her mother. She has a beautiful smile. She's very, very friendly, very loving, very welcoming.

She loved to be around her family. Melody Buzzard is just six months old when her father passes away in a car crash. Melody is described as a very sweet and loving little girl who loves spending time with her cousins and flashing her beautiful smile. Melody's father's family hasn't seen the little girl in years. According to a California education spokesperson, her mother had never filed the legally required homeschooling paperwork. When officers arrived at their home, they discovered Melody hadn't been seen or heard from in a year. Joining us tonight, high-profile lawyer Lauren Johnson Norris, defense attorneys specializing in juvenile and CPS cases. Lauren,

Thank you for being with us, Lauren. When you are homeschooling a child, doesn't the state have some duty to keep up with what's happening? Absolutely. Not only does the school have an obligation to make sure that the right paperwork is filed and that the child is participating in the curriculum. But if this was a CPS supervised case, that court needs to know that that child is receiving the educational needs and their rights are being protected by their parents. So all of this should have been supervised by government, it just should have been monitored. I'm just thinking about this program that the school offers, and that is, I'm sure you're familiar with, Lauren Johnson-Norris. Homeschool children have optional opportunities to go on trips with the school, participate in certain classes at the school.

And it seems that she was doing that a year ago, but this. kind of fell out. And I'm trying to understand how carefully the state monitors homeschooled children. For instance, the Turpin family, remember all the Turpin children. I think there were nine of them. And outwardly, they would be photoed in matching T-shirts and at events. But at home, they were starved and beaten and locked in their room and tortured. They were actually handcuffed, and they were homeschooled.

So exactly what is the state supposed to be doing to monitor these children who are just home alone with mom? Well, I think that it depends because first, if there is an open case, then there are social workers and there are attorneys and there's a judge who's supervising the entire situation. Those social workers are supposed to check in on a monthly basis when a child is placed with their parent. and they are supposed to be fully investigating, checking into the home, and reporting back to a judge what is occurring. Well, we don't know here is whether there was an open case or not, but I assure you that law enforcement is filing what it needs to do to open any case that has existed for this child with this parent to get the background and find out what's going on. If the case is closed and a parent just has their legal right to parent and make educational decisions, then no one else is going to keep a close eye except the school. And it appears that this school, I mean, fortunately, somebody brought something forward because they hadn't seen this child in a year. And I think they have a right.

You know, they have to do that because they also rely on that for state funding. But maybe someone had a concern, and that's why they brought it forward at the same time. What, yeah, why isn't she on these trips? Why isn't she participating? Did they check in and make sure they got the information? Crime stories with Nancy Grace. Mars Avenue residents say Ashley Buzzard largely keeps to herself. Hearing the news of Melody's disappearance,

Buzzard's next-door neighbor, Casey Monreal, checks her surveillance cameras, believing they may have captured Melody recently, but there was no sign of the little girl at the home in a long time. Since the report, police and CPS are frequently parked outside Buzzards' home and canvassing the neighborhood for footage. That's something that you raise the red flag when you've got CPS parked outside your house, child protective services. Alexis Tereschuk joining us,

CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter Alexis, so the neighbor thought she may have seen Melody in the last 30 days, but the surveillance video seems to indicate otherwise. What more do you know about the case, Alexis? Well, I do know that the FBI has been brought in to work on this case. When the FBI is brought in, it's not because this little girl is hanging out in a friend's house or CPS has her in a secret house and they don't know about it. There is a big concern that there is a fear for this child's life.

The FBI is looking for her. They're trying to find her. She was, her mom brought her to the school in person in August to sign up for her independent studies, as they call it, California at homeschooling. And that's it. She hasn't been seen since. She hasn't been, no one has seen her. And as the man said, who's been talking to neighbors, they used to maybe see her,

but it's been a very long time. And with a child, you take them to the dentist, you take them to the doctor, you take them to McDonald's. You do anything in public with your child and nobody has seen her. She has not been anywhere. I want to go to Sydney Sumner now following up on what Alexis Torres-Chuk just told us. What can you tell me about a large suitcase and a box, Sydney Sumner? Well, earlier Aunt Elizabeth was telling us about Karina trying to make contact with Melody's mom, Ashley. When Karina was trying to make that contact, trying to check on Ashley see if she was okay, would tell her anything more about Melody, you see Ashley coming in and out of the garage back into the house,

and she's carrying a very large pink suitcase, and there's also a box taped up at her front door. We heard from Bill Garcia that that garage is stacked with boxes. It kind of looks like Ms. Buzzard may be trying to leave town. In November, a process server acting on behalf of Crown asset management noted he received no answer at Buzzard's home, which appears vacant but maintained. His notes say there are no decorations at the front door and the garage is empty. Neighbors confirm the home has been vacant for nearly three months. Last month, when Crown tries again, the server tells the court they could not locate Buzzard in Lompoc. Well, from what I'm understanding, Bill Garcia, the home may look

vacant, but she's in there locked away, Bill? Is that right? That's what I'm being told. by one particular neighbor who has a very good vantage point on the house and she is concerned for Melody as well. And I didn't get a good read from the visit. The fact that the garage store has been opened for at least three days in that disarray. I took several photographs of the homes exterior of the contents of the garage from a vantage point. and again, try to contact Ashley. I have the ability, I've had the ability to get some of these types of subjects to actually confide in me. And I've been able to solve some missing person's cases in that effect.

And I attempted that. Go back to that one photo real quickly, please. This is a shot that we obtained. It looks to be the girl and her mom. mom, but this photo is old. Isn't that right, Sidney? Yes, the photo is two years old at least. Okay, this is the home. There's the mom. There's the daughter at the door. You see her. This is two years old. Tonight, where is Melody?

Ashley Buzzard is facing legal scrutiny over unpaid debts. The mom is taken to court in December and May for some's owed to Capital One. the December case claiming she owed nearly $3,000. Discover Bank also sought $4,200 from Buzzard in a now-dismissed 24 case. Crown Assessment Management has twice failed to serve Buzzard for unpaid debts. To Dr. Bethany Marshall joining a psychoanalyst out of L.A., Dr. Bethany, money problems weigh in. When you've got a mom already stressed and then these crushing money problems, What effect does that have on raising your child? Well, interestingly, Nancy, money problems reduce a person's capacity for critical thinking,

for problem solving, for looking to the future, for providing for others. So what it means to me is that she may have become more low functioning. And if she was less able to care for the child, and that child would be capable of telling other people about that, that would motivate her to cut the child off from outside people. Now, what I think is so interesting about what Bill said about the mother locking the door behind her every time she leaves the house, she is sequentially, incrementally isolating that child from the world. And you and I know, Nancy, that is a sign of abuse. Now, I'm not saying the mother is an abuser.

I don't know if she is. But I'm saying that when anybody, whether it's a husband, a wife, a child, a parent, isolates a loved one from community, from others. They are doing it for a reason. And what I wonder with the shaved head, the response when the relative came to the door, if there was an increasing paranoia, or this would fit the profile of somebody who has become increasingly paranoid, cutting themselves and the child off. And what that paranoia meant in terms of her relationship with the child and how she treated the child. Rhonda, DeKere, joining me, founder of Missing and Action Network for Missing Persons Families. Rhonda, again, thanks for being with us tonight. Rhonda, what do we do now?

Well, we have to find out what happened. We have to talk to any friends, any neighbors, exactly what everybody's doing, getting the word out, trying to look for her. we have seen this happen so many times with so many children and it doesn't take us very long to figure out that something bad happened and so right now you would think if there was a friend or a neighbor or anybody in a grocery store that had seen her that they would have already come forward so it's getting it's getting very concerning Alexis Tereschuk what do we know that L.E law enforcement is doing they I believe had a search warrant in the home they didn't find anything that would give them any clue, but now the mom is not participating.

Alexis Tereschuk, you're right. But when they did this, they reformed the search on the home, there was no melody. There was no melody and there wasn't a glaring sign of a crime. They didn't find blood. They didn't find anything. They just didn't find melody. And they have, there was nothing for them to do. There was nothing that showed that there had been something that happened to her traumatically in the home. Okay. Let me follow up with Lauren Johnson. Norris, a high-profile lawyer out of Orange County. Lauren, when the cops executed search warrant in your home, they don't see your child. They ask you where the child is, and you don't give an answer, what, they're just supposed

to walk away and suck their thumb? I mean, where's the child? If the mom won't tell and the dad died in a crash, what are they supposed to do? Well, I know it's really frustrating for all of us and for law enforcement. The search warrant likely listed certain items that were within the scope of the search warrant that they could look for. It doesn't override the person's Fifth Amendment right to not speak to police, which it appears she is exercising. But sure, it's frustrating to not be able to get the information from the one person who likely has that information. That's why law enforcement will need to continue to do its job, seek the juvenile court records to find more information about other placements where the child could be,

other contacts that the mother may have and seek all the evidence they can within the realm of the law. If you know or think you know anything about the location of this now, we hope, nine-year-old little girl, Melody, please dial 805-681-4150. Repeat, 801-681-4150. We remember an American hero, Lieutenant Nathan Cass, Riverside County Sheriff's, shot in the line of duty after 25 years in L.E. Law Enforcement, leaving behind grieving wife and three children. I'm American hero, Lieutenant Nathan Cass. Nancy Grace, signing off. Goodbye, friend.