Melodee Buzzard’s Cause of Death Revealed After 9-Year-Old Girl Went Missing

UPDATE: 12/24/25 1:22 p.m. ET.

Authorities have revealed the cause of death for 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard, who went missing in October, as gunshot wounds to the head. It has not been revealed how many times Melodee was shot, People reported on Wednesday, December 24.

Melodee’s body was discovered on December 6, outside of Caineville, Utah, the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a Tuesday, December 23, press release and subsequent press conference. Her body was decomposed, which sheriffs believe points to her most likely being killed in October.

One day after DNA analysis confirmed that the remains found in Utah belonged to Melodee, her mother, Ashlee Lynn Buzzard, was arrested for her alleged murder. She was taken into custody on Tuesday “without incident” and booked the Santa Barbara County Northern Branch Jail for first-degree murder at approximately 7:51 a.m., per the sheriff’s office. Ashlee is being held without bail.

“This is an extraordinarily tragic case involving the murder of a child by the very person she relied upon and trusted the most,” Sheriff Bill Brown said in the press release. “While maternal filicide is rare and difficult to comprehend, the evidence in this case clearly indicates a calculated, deliberate, and ruthless act.”

Original story below:

The body of missing 9-year-old girl Melodee Buzzard has been found out of state two months after she went missing in Southern California, a law enforcement source confirmed to NBC News on Tuesday, December 23.

The source said that Melodee’s body was found earlier in December, though further details about the discovery have not yet been shared.

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Shortly after her body was found, Melodee’s mother, Ashlee Buzzard, was reportedly taken into custody, according to video shared with NBC News affiliate KSBY. The family’s neighbors said they saw Ashlee being taken by deputies from her home early on December 23. However, it’s not currently clear why she was taken into custody.

The Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Office has not yet confirmed that Melodee’s body was found, though they shared that they had an update regarding the case in an X post. “The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office has major developments in the missing person investigation for 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard. Members of the media are invited to a press conference: Tuesday, December 23, 2025, 2:00 p.m.,” the post read.

Melodee’s disappearance in October has left many people in her community of Vandenberg Village feeling unsettled, while the case has garnered national interest.

Officials previously said that Ashlee, 40, had been “uncooperative and has not provided detectives with any information about Melodee’s current location or condition” amid the search and investigation into Melodee’s disappearance, according to NBC News.

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In October, the Lompoc Unified School District said in a statement that Ashlee brought Melodee to an independent study program in August to enroll her as a student. However, she did not attend through early October, and the district ultimately notified law enforcement about her absences.

Amid the investigation, authorities looked into a road trip the mother-daughter duo took from Southern California to Nebraska that took place between October 7 and October 10.

The sheriff’s office said that one security video captured on October 7 showed Melodee wearing a wig at a rental car business, where the duo picked up a Chevrolet Malibu. Detectives speculated she was wearing the wig to throw off attempts to track or find her, noting that Ashlee herself was known to sport wigs.

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At one point during the trip, the rental car’s license plate was temporarily switched to a New York plate in an alleged attempt to avoid detection.

Melodee was last seen on the return leg of the trip on October 9 when she and Ashlee were near the Utah-Colorado border. The young girl was not with her mother when she returned the rental car or came back home on October 10, detectives previously confirmed.

Ashlee was previously arrested on suspicion of felony false imprisonment on November 7 in a separate case not related to Melodee’s disappearance. A man testified that Ashlee held him against his will at her home and threatened him with a box cutter, according to KSBY of San Luis Obispo. The charge was ultimately dismissed on November 20, with prosecutors citing contradictory information and insufficient evidence.


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5 Best Free Movies to Watch on YouTube, Pluto TV, Tubi and More (December 2025)

For a long time, if you wanted to watch a movie on TV at home for free, you simply had to watch with a few commercials.

Well, if you don’t feel like shelling out the money for Netflix or HBO Max, you’re in luck: movies with ads still exist, they’re just on ad-supported streamers.

Platforms like Tubi, Pluto TV and even YouTube carry thousands of quality free movies in their libraries. This December, Watch With Us is highlighting some of the best.

Whether you want a big-budget comedy like Barbie or a prestige superhero movie like Batman Begins, you can watch it all for free at your fingertips.

New on Tubi in December 2025 — The Full List of All the Free Movies and TV Shows

Barbie (Margot Robbie) lives in the perfect dreamworld of Barbieland, where Barbies hold positions of power while all the Kens have to do is spend their days at the beach. However, when Barbie starts to experience an uncharacteristic existential crisis, she learns she must travel to the real world to see what’s going on with the girl who’s playing with her. Accompanied by a Ken (Ryan Gosling), Barbie searches for her owner while Ken gets some unsavory ideas about a newfangled concept called “the patriarchy.”

The Barbie phenomenon was certainly helped a bit by the “Barbenheimer” double-feature craze back in 2023, but make no mistake — Barbie is a fantastic and ingenious comedy film with or without the help of Christopher Nolan. Robbie and Gosling are the film’s standouts (Gosling in particular able to show off his comedic chops), but the entire cast works wonders: Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon, Simu Liu and Michael Cera all give hilarious performances.

Thirty-five years following the events of Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, Blade Runner 2049 stars Ryan Gosling now stars in this sequel as LAPD Officer K, who hunts down and kills rogue replicant models — while also being a replicant himself. When K discovers a box containing shocking information following a mission, it threatens to destabilize the relationship between humans and replicants. K’s discovery is linked to missing blade runner Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), whom he goes on a quest to find.

While Blade Runner 2049 didn’t do so great at the box office, it was critically acclaimed and received a number of Academy Award nominations, winning two: Best Cinematography for Roger Deakins and Best Special Visual Effects. Ultimately, director Denis Villeneuve (Dune) expands upon Blade Runner in thoughtful and exciting ways, and the film manages to be an impressive visual feat distinct from the original as well.

The final installment in Daniel Craig‘s iteration as James Bond sees 007 finally leading a peaceful life in Jamaica, having since left active service in MI6. But, of course, that respite is merely momentary, and Bond is pulled back into his former work when an old CIA friend (Jeffrey Wright) shows up in need of his help. Bond must rescue a kidnapped scientist, but the mission becomes more arduous than expected and sends him down a dangerous path.

This epic conclusion to Craig’s chapter as Bond was met with warm response from fans and critics, praising the film not only for its exciting action sequences and slick style, but its ability to oscillate between comedy, drama, horror and romance with ease. In the end, the thrilling and visually stunning film is a fitting sendoff to Craig that ends up being far more moving than most people might expect.

This Batman origin story follows Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) from developing a fear of bats to his parents’ grisly murders, to his time in Bhutan training with the League of Shadows. But when he discovers the League’s intent to destroy the “corrupt” Gotham, he returns to the city intent on cleaning up crime sans killing. With the help of his butler (Michael Caine) and tech expert Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), Batman takes on bad guys like the Scarecrow (Cillian Murphy).

Christopher Nolan’s take on Batman is credited with having revitalized the character after the poor showing in Batman & Robin from 1997. Nolan moved away from the camp of Joel Schumacher and the gothic kink of Tim Burton and turned Batman into a prestige drama film — and it paid off. Critics applauded Batman Begins for understanding the core of the character while bringing him into exciting and intelligent new territory. In the end, Batman Begins spawned a legendary trilogy.

The grand conclusion to the John Wick story (or is it?), John Wick: Chapter 4 follows the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 —Parabellum. Wick (Keanu Reeves) hides out in New York City with the Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) as he recovers from having been shot. Now seeking revenge against the High Table, who want him dead, the price on Wick’s head grows higher and higher. But Wick’s final battle now goes global, as he finds himself targeted by assassins around the world in service of a powerful enemy.

5 Great Movies to Watch in Pluto TV’s “Holidays Are Brutal” Collection

John Wick: Chapter 4 manages to be more grandiose, violent and excessive than the previous three John Wick films, and yet the movie doesn’t suffer for it. Instead, this fourth film in the action franchise proves that there can never be too much when it comes to watching Keanu Reeves’ kick people’s butts. With fantastic set pieces, mesmerizing fight choreography, and genuinely solid performances, John Wick: Chapter 4 stands as a highlight in modern action blockbuster filmmaking.


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What Happened to Elaine Hendrix? Inside Her Car Accident and ‘DWTS’ Injury

Elaine Hendrix has been acting since the ‘90s — but it wasn’t always her main career path. When the actress was injured in a 1992 car accident, her dance career came to a halt and she was forced to change course.

“I believe that everything happens for a reason and it pushed me in this direction that completely worked out, thankfully,” Hendrix said with a laugh during a July 2016 interview with the Huffington Post, reflecting on why she chose to jump into acting headfirst.

It’s been more than three decades since Hendrix was hit by a car riding her bike, but her accident still haunts her. In fact, during season 34 of Dancing With the Stars, Hendrix revealed that the aftermath of the crash makes it harder to compete.

While pushing past her physical limits on the ABC competition series, Hendrix was hospitalized for an unrelated injury in October, causing fans to worry. However, Hendrix was given the green light to continue on her DWTS journey beginning with the Tuesday, November 4, episode.

‘DWTS’ Cast Rallies Around ‘Rockstar’ Elaine Hendrix After Hospitalization

Scroll down to learn more about Hendrix’s car accident and DWTS injury:

Inside Elaine’s 1992 Car Accident

“I had just come to Los Angeles to begin my professional career and very soon after moving here I was riding my bike and got hit by a car,” Hendrix told the Huffington Post in July 2016, noting that one moment “changed everything for me.”

During her September DWTS opening package, Hendrix revealed she is “really lucky” that she “walked away” from the accident but didn’t expand further.

How Did Her Career Change After the Accident?

The Parent Trap star told the Huffington Post in July 2016 that she began her career as a “classically trained dancer in modern and contemporary jazz.” Following her accident, Hendrix said, “Dance became something that was very painful to do, so it just pushed me more in the direction of acting.”

Hendrix recalled booking a few guest starring roles before landing her first series. “That’s when I stopped dancing professionally but I never stopped dancing altogether,” she told the outlet. “It’s just that whenever I dance I need to be prepared for the fact that I will be really sore and can’t quite do the things I used to do, but that’s OK.”

Alan Bersten and Elaine Hendrix Break Down DWTS’ Meredith Blake ‘Homage’

How Has Elaine’s Accident Affected Her ‘DWTS’ Run?

Hendrix revealed during an October episode of Dancing With the Stars that following her ‘90s car accident, a titanium joint was placed in her right foot. She said during Wicked Night that the joint “renders half my foot unusable.”

“Every week, my body shifts into a new pain spot, but I just don’t want to let it stop me,” the actress explained during the show package. “I know my determination is going to win it, just getting there is quite a journey.”

What Happened to Elaine Hendrix Inside Her Car Accident and DWTS Injury Season 34
Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images

Why Was Elaine Hospitalized on ‘DWTS’ Season 34?

During rehearsals for Halloween Week in October, Hendrix was rushed to the hospital after experiencing pain in her ribs. The contestant later revealed via her Instagram that she injured her ribs during her “Defying Gravity” performance one week prior and they “just seized up” during practice.

“I couldn’t move. They brought me to the hospital,” Hendrix said in the Tuesday, October 28, video. “The doctor has said that with a day or two of rest, I should be able to continue and that’s exactly what I want to do. I want to dance, I want to keep doing this.”

Hendrix’s dance partner, Alan Bersten, explained during the October 28 episode that while they were working on their Argentine tango, “Elaine kind of froze and said she can’t move and she can’t breathe, and something happened with her rib.”

He noted she was in “so much pain” and therefore he had no idea if they would dance that evening. The pair did not perform and were instead judged on their practice routine.

‘Dancing With the Stars’ Injuries Through the Years

Will Elaine Be Back on ‘DWTS’?

Despite missing Halloween Night, Hendrix and Bersten scored 8s across the board from the judges on October 28. With fans’ votes, they were saved from elimination. Hendrix’s doctors, meanwhile, cleared her to continue on in the competition.

“You guys voted, we are going to be safe. We got another dance to [perform],” Bersten confirmed during a TikTok Live following the episode. “We’re going to take it easy but we will be back for the show. We will take this week easy.”


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Missed Paychecks, NBA Gambling Scandal, Russia Reacts

More than a million federal workers are missing their first full paycheck as the shutdown stretches into week four, with pressure building on Washington to end the standoff. A wild NBA gambling scandal involving secret gadgets lands an active player and a Hall of Fame coach in legal trouble. And Russia’s president shrugs off new U.S. sanctions after President Trump cancels his summit with Vladimir Putin.

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p class=”readrate”>Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Emily Kopp, Russell Lewis, Kate Bartlett, Mohamad ElBardicy and Martha Ann Overland.

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p class=”readrate”>We get engineering support from Stacey Abbott. And our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

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p class=”readrate”>And our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor

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