Ashlee Buzzard, the California mother accused of killing her 9-year-old daughter, Melodee Buzzard, pleaded not guilty Friday morning during a brief but emotional trial in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.
Buzzard, 40, appeared in custody at the trial, where a judge acquitted him of murder, ambush and gun-related charges in the death of his daughter, whose remains were found Dec. 6 in a remote Utah area.
The courtroom erupted as Buzzard entered a plea of not guilty to all charges, as people sitting in the garage screamed “oh my god,” video footage of the trial shows. The magistrate asked for a brief order before proceeding further.
Buzzard will remain in custody without bail pending trial, according to the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office. His hearing is scheduled for Jan. 7.
The authorities suspect that Buzzard shot and killed Melodee during a multi-state road trip in October before returning solo to Santa Barbara County.
Investigators believe the slaying occurred on or around October 9, shortly after the two were last seen together on surveillance video near the Utah-Colorado border.
Melodee was reported missing weeks ago after not returning home from what investigators described as an “extraordinary” cross-country trip with her mother. According to sheriff’s officials, Buzzard rented a car for the trip and took deliberate steps to avoid detection, including wearing wigs and disguises. Buzzard was also filmed during surveillance changing license plates and returning to gas stations so the cameras would not capture identifying information, investigators said.
On December 6, the couple found Melodee’s decomposed body in a remote area of State Route 24 near Caineville, Utah.
Prosecutors allege that Buzzard committed the murder with “premeditated, deliberate, or deliberate intent.” The criminal complaint described the killing as well-planned and “professional,” alleging that Buzzard killed with “a high degree of malice, cruelty, or compassion.”
“This level of criminal activity is shocking, especially considering the systematic, reckless and organized nature of crime,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said at a Tuesday news conference.
Ballistics evidence played a major role in the case, investigators said. Cartridge shells found near a Utah crime scene were matched through a state database to an expired case found during a search of Buzzard’s home in Vandenberg Village.
Similar bullets were found in the rental car Buzzard used on the trip, according to law enforcement officials. DNA testing later confirmed the family resemblance between the Buzzard and the fossils found in Utah.
Buzzard was arrested at his Santa Barbara County residence on December 23.
Investigators rely on physical, digital and technical evidence when the suspect’s cooperation is not forthcoming. Authorities have not identified a motive and do not believe anyone else was involved.
Authorities were alerted to Melodee’s disappearance when the school’s principal first reported her long-term disappearance, which led to a social welfare assessment that launched an investigation.
Investigators said Buzzard was “uncooperative” with the entire investigation and refused to provide a definitive explanation of her daughter’s whereabouts when deputies first contacted her in October. Detectives later obtained search warrants for Buzzard’s home, a storage facility and a rental car tied to the road trip.
Melodee’s disappearance drew the attention of many people, family members and members of the public who organized a search as authorities tracked the mother’s movements in California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas.
“We were all hoping to find Melodee alive, just like you were,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Patrick Grandy said at a news conference Tuesday. “Our collective hearts are broken by this senseless outcome.”
Court records show that Buzzard has faced financial turmoil in recent years, including a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing and multiple bankruptcy cases.
Prosecutors suspect that Buzzard’s intent to kill was established in Santa Barbara County, which is why the case will be tried there even though the killing took place out of state, sheriff’s officials said.
Buzzard will appear in court again on January 7, when a judge will decide if there is enough evidence to proceed with the case.
