A judge has ordered that actor Timothy Busfield be released from jail as he awaits trial on child sex abuse charges.

The order Tuesday, by state district court Judge David Murphy during a detention hearing, is linked to accusations that Busfield inappropriately touched a minor while working as a director on the set of the series “The Cleaning Lady.”

The judge ordered that the defendant be released on his own recognizance, pending trial. Busfield will be supervised upon release by a pretrial service in Albuquerque, and can leave the state to live at home, the judge said. Under the conditions of his release, Busfield cannot be in possession of firearms or drugs and can’t have contact with the alleged victims.

Busfield, an Emmy Award-winning actor who is known for appearances in “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams” and “Thirtysomething,” was ordered held without bond last week at his first court appearance. Busfield called the allegations lies in a video shared before he turned himself in.

At the hearing Tuesday, Busfield was handcuffed and dressed in an orange jail uniform in a New Mexico state district court, while wife and actor Melissa Gilbert watched from the court gallery.

Gilbert was tearful while exiting the courtroom after the judge ordered Busfield’s release.

Gilbert, who played Laura Ingalls in the 1970s to ’80s TV series “Little House on the Prairie,” is on the list of potential witnesses submitted ahead of the hearing.

Albuquerque police issued a warrant for Busfield’s arrest earlier this month on two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse. A criminal complaint alleges the acts occurred on the set of the series “The Cleaning Lady.”

According to the criminal complaint, an investigator with the police department says the child reported Busfield touched him on private areas over his clothing on one occasion when he was 7 years old and another time when he was 8. The boy’s twin brother told authorities he was also touched by Busfield, but did not specify where. He said he didn’t say anything because he didn’t want to get in trouble.

On Monday, Busfield’s attorneys submitted two brief audio recordings of initial police interviews in which the children say Busfield did not touch them in private areas. The attorneys in a court filing argue that the complaint characterizes the interviews as a failure to disclose abuse, but an “unequivocal denial is materially different from a mere absence of disclosure.”

According to the criminal complaint, one of the boys disclosed during a therapy session that he was inappropriately touched by the show’s director. Those records were obtained by police during the investigation.

Arguing Tuesday for Busfield’s continued detention, Bernalillo County Assistant District Attorney Savannah Brandenburg-Koch called evidence of abuse against Busfield strong and specific.

“The boys’ allegation are supported by medical findings and by their therapist,” Brandenburg-Koch said. “Their accounts were specific and not exaggerated.”

She also described a documented pattern of sexual misconduct, abuse of authority and grooming behavior by Busfield over the past three decades. Prosecutors also say witnesses have expressed fear regarding retaliation and professional harm.

“GPS is not going to tell this court if he is around children or talking to witnesses,” Brandenburg-Koch said.

Busfield’s attorneys have argued that the allegations emerged only after the boys lost their role in the TV show, creating a financial and retaliatory motive. The filings detailed what the attorneys said was a history of fraud by both the boys’ father and mother. They cited an investigation by Warner Bros. that found the allegations unfounded.

Busfield also submitted letters vouching for his character, and his attorneys say he passed an independent polygraph test.

Legal experts say New Mexico is among a few states that allow polygraph evidence in criminal cases, but a judge has final say over whether one can be used. There are strict requirements for admission.

Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton melted hearts with their geature, supporting Harry during his UK visit.

The future monarch seemingly sent a subtle nod to his younger brother with his act.

The Prince and Princess of Wales brought the house down at the national academy as they enjoyed moments with the athletes, which includes both able-bodied and wheelchair-using curlers.

Kensington Palace delighted fans by sharing a picture from the event to the Prince and Princess of Wales’ official Instagram, wishing: “Good luck at the Winter Olympics to the Team GB curlers, and all the @teamgb and @paralympicsgb_official athletes going to Milan!”

Kate and William were all smiles as they posed for a group photo with them to support a cause close to Harry’s heart.

The Duke, 41, is set to bring the Invictus Games to Birmingham in 2027. The multi-sport event, founded by Harry in 2014, supports wounded, injured, and sick military service personnel, both serving and veterans.

The Waleses’ move seems to be a sign of unity and support for Harry’s initiatives, putting aside their differences for the greater good.

The gesture melted hearts as the royals came together for a common cause.

“Queer Eye” star Karamo Brown was notably absent from Tuesday’s “CBS Mornings” live interview with the full cast as they promoted the release of the series’ 10th and final season, citing a need to prioritize his mental health.

Roughly an hour before the interview, Brown’s assistant informed “CBS Mornings” that the cast member wouldn’t be joining the on-set interview due to mental health concerns and, in part, because he was worried about being bullied.

In a statement released to “CBS Mornings” explaining his absence, Brown said, “Thank you to everyone around the world for welcoming me into their homes for 10 seasons. Season 10 is amazing and I know you will fall in love with the deserving people we helped.”

It continued, “Though the show is ending, I hope everyone remembers the main theme I have tried to teach them over the past decade, which is to focus on and to protect their mental health/peace from people or a world who seek to destroy it; which is why I can’t be there today. Thank you to the crew for being the best in business and the executives for believing in me. 10 Seasons, I’m truly humbled.”

Brown is part of the Fab Five, which includes Tan France, Jonathan Van Ness, Antoni Porowski and Jeremiah Brent, who joined the cast on season nine of the show. Brent replaced interior designer Bobby Berk, who left the show after eight seasons.

“Queer Eye” cast addresses Brown’s absence

Porowski said “surprise is a fair understatement,” referring to Brown’s absence after listening to “CBS Mornings” co-host Gayle King read his statement.

“I will say our ‘Queer Eye’ family, we have been doing this for almost a decade, which is pretty wild to believe, and families are complicated. We’re definitely not excluded from that,” Porowski said. 

Van Ness said he’s honored to have learned from Brown during their time together on the show.

“He has taught people to center what they need and I’m actually really proud of him. Center what you need. Do the things you need to take care of you. I’d be lying if I didn’t feel like that sometimes,” Van Ness said. “And so, I think it’s really beautiful, and I think we do need to center what is best for us sometimes and my hat off to him for doing that today.”

Brent called his experience with the group transformative, saying, “I have felt safe and supported by the people up here. I have loved every second of this thing and I’m so excited that we get to do this and share this next season because the show really is just about highlighting the best of humanity.”

10th and final season

In the very first episode of the series, France said they were working toward acceptance, but as the show comes to a close, he revealed he isn’t sure that’s happened yet.

“I would love to believe that we have come around to that, but as we’ve seen, especially over the last year or so, that hasn’t been the case here in particular in the U.S. I pray we will continue to fight for acceptance but it is not just ours,” France said. “It is our entire nation’s responsibility at this point to fight for those who can’t fight for themselves.”

But the cast members agreed the show has had a massive impact on their lives.

“It has really given me hope for what this country has been and can be again,” France said. “It helps me to understand the way our country operates through the heroes that we’ve helped.”

“It’s just opened my eyes to so much,” Van Ness added, reflecting on his time on the series. “At the end of the day people want to be safe. They want to be loved and accepted by their family. Sometimes that’s not possible so they have a chosen family around them. I think we are so much more similar than we are different.”

For Porowski, “Queer Eye” has changed him as a person as he looks at future projects. 

“I think it has for all us in how we want to, the type of stories that we want to tell and even more importantly, other people, hopefully it inspires them to kind of push towards embracing diversity,” he said.