Timothy Busfield has pleaded not guilty in New Mexico to four felony counts that accuse him of sexual contact with a child, according to court filings. The case springs from an indictment returned by a Bernalillo County grand jury and centers on allegations involving child actors. Busfield surrendered to authorities in January and has publicly rejected the accusations, saying he intends to fight them in court.
Grand jury indictment and charge dates
A Bernalillo County grand jury returned a four-count indictment on Feb. 6, according to reporting by the Los Angeles Times. Court records list two of the alleged offenses as occurring on Oct. 19, 2022, and the other two on Sept. 11, 2023, per Entertainment Weekly.
What prosecutors allege
Prosecutors say the complaints came from twin 11-year-old boys who worked on Fox's The Cleaning Lady, and that one child reported repeated inappropriate touching beginning when he was 7, according to reporting by the Associated Press. The investigation began after a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital alerted authorities, and an arrest warrant followed in early January. Those details appear in court records and Associated Press coverage published by outlets including The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Court proceedings and conditions
Court filings reviewed by People show that Busfield entered a not-guilty plea and waived a formal arraignment. A scheduling hearing is set for March 10. A judge also laid out conditions for his release, including no unsupervised contact with minors and a ban on alcohol and illegal drugs, as reported by NBC News.
Defense response and support
Busfield's legal team has blasted the indictment as "fundamentally unsound," with attorney Stanton "Larry" Stein saying a grand jury indictment was "not unexpected" and vowing to contest the charges in court. Dozens of letters of support, including statements from his wife, Melissa Gilbert, along with former castmates and colleagues, were submitted to the court and noted in coverage of the proceedings, according to TheWrap.
Legal context
Busfield was indicted on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor, each charged as a third-degree felony. Under New Mexico law, criminal sexual contact of a minor can carry multi-year prison terms, and some related child-sex offenses come with mandatory minimum sentences in specific circumstances. The relevant statutory language and sentencing framework are laid out in the New Mexico code and summarized at Justia.
The case is set to move forward at the March 10 scheduling hearing, and Busfield continues to deny the allegations. Reporting and court filings cited by People and other outlets will be key to tracking how the matter unfolds in New Mexico's courts.
