Overview
- Remains discovered on Dec. 6 near Utah State Route 24 in Wayne County were identified as Melodee through an FBI familial DNA match on Dec. 22.
- Sheriff Bill Brown said Ashlee L. Buzzard, 40, was arrested Dec. 23 at her Vandenberg Village home and booked on first-degree murder, with no bail.
- Authorities reported Melodee died from multiple gunshot wounds to the head, and ATF matched casings from the Utah scene to a cartridge recovered at the mother's residence on Dec. 17.
- Investigators traced the pair’s Oct. 7–10 road trip to Nebraska, with Melodee last seen on Oct. 9 near the Colorado–Utah border and her mother returning to California alone the next day.
- Detectives allege disguises and a temporary license-plate swap were used during the trip; the investigation remains active as they seek the firearm and a motive, and officials currently believe the mother acted alone.