Missing Children

A Santa Barbara County judge dismissed a felony false‑imprisonment charge against 40‑year‑old Ashlee Buzzard for insufficient evidence at a preliminary hearing, terminating her pretrial supervision and prompting removal of her ankle monitor. The FBI and local detectives continue to treat 9‑year‑old Melodee Buzzard as a missing‑person case, executing search warrants at the Buzzard home, a storage locker and a rental car tied to a multi‑state Oct. 7–9 trip in which investigators say the car’s plates were swapped and surveillance shows the pair wearing wigs; no arrests have been made and Ashlee has not provided a verifiable account of Melodee’s whereabouts.