The mother of a missing 9-year-old girl from Vandenberg Village made her second court appearance Wednesday in connection with the false imprisonment case against her.
Authorities say the felony charge is unrelated to the disappearance of Buzzard’s daughter, Melodee, and was filed in connection with a Nov. 6 incident that allegedly took place at her Mars Avenue home.
Investigators have been searching for the girl since Oct. 14, when school officials reported Melodee’s prolonged absence.
Buzzard has been uncooperative with the investigation, authorities say, adding that the mother has not provided information regarding her daughter's whereabouts.
Wednesday morning’s court appearance was quick, lasting less than one minute.
One neighbor who attended the hearing, Khristiana Valrie, expressed her frustration with how much time has passed since Melodee's disappearance was announced.
"At the end of the day, Melodee is the only one that matters here, a 9-year-old girl that's been missing for 40 days and her mom's not speaking out," Valrie said.
Dressed in a black top, sweater, pants, and wearing the long, curly wig she was wearing at the time of her arrest, Buzzard was escorted into the Lompoc courtroom alongside her public defender.
Both sides confirmed to the judge that they’re ready to move forward with a preliminary hearing on Thursday morning.
That hearing is an opportunity for the defense and prosecution to present evidence before the judge and call witnesses. The judge will then make a ruling on whether he feels there is enough evidence to proceed with the felony charge against Buzzard and move her case forward to trial.
Buzzard's public defender, Adrian Galvan, says his client denies the allegations.
"We deny wholeheartedly any of the charges, the special allegations brought by the prosecution," Galvan said, adding, "We're eager to put this process into place tomorrow."
Buzzard spent five days behind bars following her arrest before the judge ordered that she be released with GPS monitoring.
WATCH: Melodee's grandmothers react after Buzzard's first court appearance
Galvan noted that the defense wants the case handled fairly and without assumptions.
"What I would like the public to understand is that the accused, in a criminal case, are afforded the presumption of innocence and we want a fair process," he said.
Galvan also clarified that the separate missing child investigation is not expected to be part of Thursday's courtroom discussion.
"That particular investigation is an ongoing investigation. It's not going to be relevant to [the alleged incident on] November 6, 2025," he said.
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, which is being assisted by the FBI in the case involving Melodee’s disappearance, says there are no new updates in that investigation as of now.
Investigators say Melodee has not been seen since Oct. 9. Authorities say surveillance images from around that time show the mother and daughter traveling together across multiple states before Buzzard returned home alone.
