Melissa was last seen in her hometown of Rancho Cordova, California on December 1, 1993. She had an argument with her mother at 11:00 p.m. on December 1 and left the house angry. At 3:00 a.m., she was seen sitting on a car hood in the parking lot of an apartment complex on White Rock Road. Melissa and her family had lived in the complex before January 1993, when there was a fire and they moved. The area around the White Rock Road complex was frequented by pimps and drug dealers in 1993 and was considered dangerous.

Melissa's parents are divorced. She had lived with her father and two older siblings in Sacramento, California in 1993, but moved in with her mother and younger brother a month before her disappearance. She has a history of running away after arguments, but had always returned within a short time. Melissa was close to her brother at the time of her disappearance; he says she would have never been gone this long without contacting him. She also called her grandmother daily. Melissa's brother stated he saw some suspicious people near her apartment in the days prior to her disappearance, and he believes they may have been involved in her case. No one has been charged in connection with her disappearance, however, and no one is named as a suspect.

Due to the lack of clues in Melissa's case, it is classified as a non-family abduction. She is considered to be missing under suspicious circumstances and foul play is suspected in her disappearance.