Entertainment
Timothy Busfield appears in court as New Mexico prosecutors seek pretrial detention over “history of alleged sexual misconduct”
Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield made his first court appearance on Wednesday, a day after turning himself in to authorities to face charges of child sex abuse stemming from allegations that he inappropriately touched a minor on the set of a TV series he was directing in New Mexico.
Albuquerque police issued a warrant for his arrest last week 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,” which was filmed in Albuquerque.
“Tim Busfield denies the allegations in the criminal complaint and maintains they are completely false,” attorney Larry Stein said in a statement to CBS News. “As a voluntary step, he submitted to an independent polygraph examination regarding those allegations and passed.”
The 68-year-old actor, who is married to actor Melissa Gilbert and is known for appearances in “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams” and “Thirtysomething,” has vowed to fight the charges. In a video shared before turning himself in, Busfield called the allegations lies.
Prosecutors are seeking to keep Busfield in custody pending trial, citing a “history of alleged sexual misconduct.” They filed a motion early Wednesday detailing their reasons for the request, pointing to what they described as a documented pattern of sexual misconduct, abuse of authority and grooming behavior by Busfield over two decades. They also said witnesses have expressed fear regarding retaliation and professional harm.
Another allegation was reported to law enforcement the same day Busfield turned himself in, Albuquerque Deputy District Attorney Savannah Brandenburg-Koch told the judge Wednesday in a court filing. A father of a then-16-year-old girl alleged Busfield kissed and inappropriately touched his daughter, who he said was auditioning for a role at B Street Theatre, an organization Busfield and his brother founded in Sacramento, California. The incident occurred several years ago, according to the document.
Busfield allegedly “begged the family to not report to law enforcement if he received therapy,” Brandenburg-Koch said in the motion. The girl’s father, who is a therapist himself, said he thought it was the best thing to do at the time, according to the prosecutor.
In a statement to CBS Sacramento, B Street Theatre said that though Busfield is its founder, he has not had an active role in its operations in any capacity since 2001. The theater declined to comment further on Busfield due to the ongoing investigation.
The motion filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court seeking to keep Busfield in custody also states that research and experience show that offenders are uniquely positioned to evade accountability and circumvent safeguards designed to protect children when they wield authority, status or influence.
“In light of the defendant’s demonstrated disregard for boundaries, authority and compliance, no condition or combination of conditions of release can reasonably protect the victims or the community,” the motion states.
It will be up to a judge to determine whether to grant the request. A detention hearing has yet to be scheduled.
Prosecutors also took issue with Busfield disseminating a video to the media outlet TMZ on Tuesday, suggesting he was prioritizing “personal narrative control and public relations” over compliance with the court process.
According to the criminal complaint, an investigator with the police department says the child reported that he was 7 years old when Busfield touched him multiple times on private areas over his clothing. Busfield allegedly touched him on another occasion when he was 8, the complaint said.
The complaint also says the child was reportedly afraid to tell anyone because Busfield was the director and he feared he would get mad at him.
The boy’s twin brother told authorities he also was touched by Busfield but did not specify where. He said he didn’t say anything because he didn’t want to get in trouble.
The mother of the twins reported to Child Protective Services that the abuse occurred between November 2022 and spring 2024, the complaint said.
In an interview with police last fall, Busfield denied the allegations and suggested that the boys’ mother was seeking revenge for her children being replaced on the series. The argument was echoed by Busfield’s attorney Tuesday.
The investigation began in November 2024 after a call from a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. The boys’ parents had gone there at the recommendation of a law firm, the complaint said.
Busfield’s attorney said an independent investigation by Warner Bros. was unable to corroborate allegations of inappropriate behavior by Busfield. But prosecutors in their filing argued that the investigator failed to talk to key witnesses.
A publicist for Gilbert said she is “not making public statements at this time.”
“Any purported ‘statements’ circulating online — including AI-generated deepfakes of her ‘breaking her silence’ — should not be treated as coming from her,” publicist Ame Van Iden said in a statement, adding, “Melissa stands with and supports her husband and will address the public at an appropriate time. We ask that their privacy be respected.”
- IBO conducted on reported presence of India-backed militants: ISPR.
- Says weapons and ammunition also recovered from killed terrorists.
- Sanitisation operation continues to eliminate any other militants.
Security forces and law enforcement agencies neutralised at least 22 India-sponsored terrorists during an intelligence-based operation in the Khyber district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on April 21, a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said on Friday.
According to the military’s media wing, the joint operation was conducted in response to the reported presence of India-backed militants, also known as Fitna al-Khawarij.
It added that during the operation, the terrorists resorted to indiscriminate firing out of panic and in an attempt to avoid capture. As a result, a 10-year-old innocent child was martyred.
The ISPR added that weapons and ammunition were also recovered from killed India-sponsored terrorists, who remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities in the area.
“Sanitisation operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Indian-sponsored kharji found in the area,” the ISPR said, adding that the relentless counter-terrorism campaign under vision “Azm-e-Istehkam” will continue at full pace to wipe out the menace of foreign-sponsored and supported terrorism from the country.
“Such sacrifices of our innocent civilians further strengthen our resolve.”
Pakistan has witnessed a spike in cross-border militant activity, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, both of which share a border with Afghanistan, since the Afghan Taliban took control in 2021.
In response to the escalating attacks, Pakistan launched “Operation Ghazab lil-Haq,” during which approximately 796 Afghan Taliban fighters and allied militants were killed, according to Information Minister Attaullah Tarar.
More than 1,000 Afghan Taliban fighters and terrorists were also injured during the Operation Ghazab lil-Haq. The minister had said that 286 posts of the Afghan Taliban regime had been destroyed and 44 captured.
In October 2025, the two countries were also involved in border clashes after Afghan Taliban fighters and allied militants carried out unprovoked assaults on Pakistan’s border positions.
The ensuing fighting resulted in the deaths of over 200 Taliban and affiliated militants, while 23 Pakistani soldiers were martyred in the line of duty.
Mariska Hargitay has revealed she was moved to tears after seeing Christopher Meloni’s emotional response to the cancellation of Law & Order: Organized Crime, describing it as the closing of a significant chapter for her longtime co-star and friend.
Speaking to Extra, Hargitay said she watched Meloni’s Instagram video about the show ending and was immediately overcome.
“I saw it and burst out in tears, first of all,” she said.
“I immediately burst out in tears because it has, just like [Meloni] said, and he was so beautiful and open, because it has been a great ride. And it has been so beautiful and intimate and such a huge part of his life and was life-changing for him.”
She also said the news had come as a genuine shock.
“Chris is working and in demand and such a magnificent actor. But it’s, in a way, closing a chapter. So when that happens, one needs to take inventory. It’s a real marker in your life.”
Law & Order: Organized Crime was officially cancelled after five seasons earlier this month.
Meloni marked the occasion with a heartfelt video on Instagram.
“I wanted to take this moment to say thank you to the fans who not only helped give the character of Elliot Stabler life and longevity, but for sticking with him and welcoming him back. It was a good ride,” he said.
The series, which premiered in 2021, followed Stabler, the character Meloni first played on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as he returned to New York after a decade away to rebuild his life and take on organised crime.
It aired on NBC for its first four seasons before moving to Peacock for its fifth and final season, which concluded in June 2025.
The cast also included Danielle Moné Truitt, Rick Gonzalez, Ainsley Seiger and Dean Norris.
Luke Grimes has been playing cowboy Kayce Dutton on Yellowstone since 2018, but some fans are still coming to terms with a fundamental truth: he is an actor, not an actual cowboy.
The 42-year-old, who now continues the character’s story in the CBS spinoff Marshals, told Toronto radio station CHUM 104.5 that the strangest fan encounters often involve a version of the same realisation.
Some viewers, he said, “loved that show so much that they were, on a certain level, upset that it wasn’t real.”
The most common version of this comes in the form of a complaint. “A lot of times you’ll get the, ‘You’re not a real cowboy.'”
His response is straightforward.
“Well, of course I’m not, I’m an actor. That’s why I’m able to do this. If I was a real cowboy, I’d be, like, herding cattle right now. I wouldn’t be on this show.”
Even his one-year-old son, whom he shares with wife Bianca Rodrigues Grimes, has his own take on the cowboy persona.
“My son thinks my cowboy hat is really funny,” Grimes told PEOPLE at the Marshals LA premiere.
“He doesn’t understand why I have that big thing on my head.” That said, the baby loves visiting the set and got excited when he was brought along.
New episodes of Marshals air Sundays at 8pm ET on CBS.
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