Actor Timothy Busfield charged with child sexual abuse
Actor Timothy Busfield has been charged with sexually abusing two minors on the set of the TV show he directed, The Cleaning Lady.
Melissa Gilbert is asking a judge to keep her husband, Timothy Busfield, safe as the “Cleaning Lady” director remains in New Mexico on child molestation charges.
Busfield, 68, was charged on Jan. 9 with two counts of sexual contact with a minor and one count of child abuse, according to a criminal complaint reviewed by USA TODAY. The charges came after New Mexico authorities issued an arrest warrant and both state police and federal marshals searched Bassfield.
between More than 70 letters of support to Busfield came from “Little House on the Prairie” actors, Busfield explained. How important is her husband to her?
“The reality is that Tim Busfield is my love, my rock, and my partner in business and life. He is my comfort and my confidant. His joy, humor, and quick wit brighten my life. Tim is, simply put, the beating heart of our wild and wonderful extended family,” Gilbert said in a letter to a Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court judge.
Gilbert said she met her husband in the 1980s and had a decades-long misunderstanding before falling in love in 2012. He said it was “the strangest letter I’ve ever had to write” as he “tried to draw a line between logic and all the emotions swirling inside me.”
“I started writing this letter logically, but now my emotions have taken over. There is nothing I can do. All I can do is wish this extraordinary man well. So I will end by asking my kind husband for his kindness. I belong to him, but I can’t protect him right now, and I think that’s what really breaks my heart more than anything. I’m counting on you to protect him for me,” she added.
Mr. Gilbert is listed as a potential witness at Mr. Busfield’s pretrial detention hearing on January 20, when a judge will decide whether to release Mr. Busfield on bail or to keep him in jail for the duration of the case.
What does Melissa Gilbert say about the allegations against her husband?
A statement provided to People magazine and Us Weekly on January 13 said: “Melissa stands by and supports her husband and will address the nation at the appropriate time.”
The actress’ statement said, “The ‘statements’ purportedly circulating online should not be treated as coming from her, including the AI-generated deepfakes that ‘broke her silence’.”
The statement said Gilbert was “respecting the request” of Busfield’s lawyers to refrain from discussing her husband’s case “while the legal process progresses.”
When did Timothy Busfield and Melissa Gilbert get married?
According to People magazine, Busfield and Gilbert married in a private ceremony on April 24, 2013 at the San Ysidro Ranch in Santa Barbara, California. After their wedding, the couple moved to Busfield’s home state of Michigan.
The couple are parents, but they have no biological children.
Gilbert has two sons from her previous marriages, “Gettysburg” actor Beau Brinkman and “How the West Was Won” actor and science fiction writer Bruce Boxleitner.
Meanwhile, Busfield has three children, one with actress and director Radha Delamater and two with fashion designer Jennifer Merwin.
What is Timothy Busfield accused of?
Busfield is charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact with a minor and one count of child abuse.
According to a criminal complaint filed by investigators with the Albuquerque Police Department, the charges involve two minors who appeared on the series “Cleaning Women,” directed by Busfield.
Busfield’s abuse of minors is said to have occurred between late 2022 and early 2024. One of the children claimed Mr. Busfield touched his genitals several times. Both claim that Busfield touched them inappropriately and told them to call them “Uncle Tim.”
The children’s mother reported the incident to Child Protective Services, according to the complaint. One of the children has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety and is afraid to go public with the allegations of abuse because of retaliation from Bassfield, according to the complaint. In 2024, staff at the University of New Mexico Hospital requested an investigation because the boys appeared to have been groomed.
According to the affidavit, Busfield told police during a telephone interview over speakerphone with Gilbert present that the shooting scene was a “playful environment” and that he “likely” tickled the boys. He suggested that the allegations were a form of revenge as the boys were fired from the show. Production assistants told Albuquerque police that Busfield sometimes seemed nervous and unprofessional.
Contributor: Taijuan Moorman, Laura Trujillo, Pamela Avila, Anna Kaufman, Edward Segarra, Claire Mulroy, USA TODAY
