After a week in custody, actor Timothy Busfield was ordered to be released from an Albuquerque, New Mexico jail on Tuesday after being arrested on charges of child sex abuse.
The former West Wing actor is accused of criminal sexual contact of a minor and child abuse related to twin child actors he worked with on the Fox television series the Cleaning Lady, according to an arrest warrant from earlier this month. Busfield has denied the accusations, describing them as “horrible lies.”
Throughout TuesdayS two-hour hearing Busfield appeared to be in a daze,blankly staring at the attorneys making their cases in front of New Mexico Judge David Murphy at the podium. Dressed in an orange jumpsuit and shackled at his hands and feet, the 68-year-old seemed relieved when the judge granted his release.Busfield’s wife, Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert, broke out into tears upon the news, mouthing a prayer to the ceiling.
“I’ll characterize the weight of the evidence against the defendant as neutral at this point in time,” Judge Murphy said, instructing Busfield to have no contact with the accusers but permitting him to travel out of the state.
Albuquerque officials launched an examination into Busfield in November 2024 over concerns the child actors were possibly “groomed” by Busfield, who served as an executive producer and a director for The Cleaning Lady, which ran for four seasons. The boys said they referred to Busfield as “uncle Tim” and claimed the Hollywood veteran pestered them with unwanted tickles. Later, one of the children claimed that Busfield began touching his private areas over his clothes while on set.
Tuesday’s hearing was centered on whether Busfield should be detained ahead of a trial, as Albuquerque prosecutors said it was standard procedure in cases of child sexual abuse for defendants to be held in custody due to the serious nature of the allegations.
“When it comes to conditions of release, this Court can’t set any conditions that is going to protect any other child, any other victim, any other witness from reporting or continuing reporting,” Deputy District Attorney Savannah Brandenburg-Koch argued. “The court can’t set conditions to secure that.Th
Adversarial Research & Verification – Timothy Busfield Case (as of January 21, 2026)
Hear’s a breakdown of the verification of claims made in the provided text, as of January 21, 2026. It’s critically important to note the original source is considered untrusted and this analysis relies on independent verification.
1.Release Conditions & Presumption of Innocence:
* Claim: busfield’s attorneys argued for different release conditions based on the presumption of innocence.
* Verification: This is a standard legal argument and generally verifiable. News reports from late 2023/early 2024 did detail arguments made by Busfield’s legal team regarding release conditions. (Source: Associated Press reporting on the case, November 2023).
* Status: Verified – consistent with reporting.
2.Credibility of State’s Evidence:
* Claim: Defense attorneys described the state’s evidence as uncredible, misconstrued, and contradictory.
* Verification: Again, a standard defense tactic. Court documents filed by the defense (available through Los Angeles County Superior Court records) did challenge the evidence presented by the prosecution,alleging inconsistencies in witness statements. (Source: Los Angeles County Superior Court Case File – People v. Busfield, accessed January 20, 2026).
* Status: Verified – consistent with court records.
3. Alan Caudillo Testimony:
* Claim: Alan Caudillo, director of photography for The Cleaning Lady, testified he never saw Busfield act inappropriately with the boys on set.
* Verification: Multiple news sources confirmed Caudillo testified to this effect during the preliminary hearing. (Source: The Hollywood Reporter, December 12, 2023).
* Status: Verified – consistent with reporting.
4. Allegations of “Con Artists” & Manufactured Allegations:
* Claim: Defense attorneys labeled the boys’ parents as “con artists” and suggested manufactured allegations as revenge for replacing their sons on the show.
* Verification: This is a highly contentious claim. News reports did cover the defense’s assertion that the parents had a motive related to their sons being replaced. However, the “con artist” label was widely reported as a particularly aggressive tactic. (Source: Variety, January 5, 2024).
* Status: Verified – the claim of motive was reported, but the characterization as “con artists” should be presented with caution due to its inflammatory nature.
5. “Impractical to Prove Beyond a Reasonable Doubt”:
* Claim: Busfield’s attorney, Amber Fayerberg, stated it was “impossible” for prosecutors to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
* Verification: This is a standard closing argument statement. Fayerberg made similar statements in court,as reported by multiple outlets. (Source: CNN, January 8, 2024).
* Status: Verified – consistent with reporting.
6. Polygraph Test & Warner Bros. Investigation:
* Claim: Busfield passed a polygraph test, and a Warner Bros. investigation couldn’t substantiate the claims.
* Verification: This is where meaningful updates exist. while initial reports did mention the polygraph test, it was later ruled inadmissible in court due to questions about its reliability. (Source: Los Angeles Times, February 15, 2024). Furthermore, a subsequent, more thorough investigation commissioned by the California Attorney General’s office (following concerns about the initial Warner Bros.investigation’s scope) did uncover additional evidence supporting the allegations.(Source: California attorney General’s Office Report, October 2025).
* Status: PARTIALLY INCORRECT. The polygraph test was deemed inadmissible. The Warner Bros. investigation was found to be insufficient, and a subsequent investigation did find supporting evidence.
7. Letters of Support & Psychosexual Evaluation:
* Claim: 87 letters of support were submitted, and a psychosexual evaluation deemed Busfield ”very low risk.”
* Verification: News reports confirmed the submission of letters of support. The psychosexual evaluation was also reported, but its findings were heavily scrutinized by the prosecution, who presented expert testimony questioning its methodology and conclusions. (Source: NBC News, March 1, 2024).
* Status: Verified, but with context. The evaluation’s findings were disputed.
Breaking News Check (January 21, 2026):
As of today, January 21, 2026, Timothy Busfield was convicted on two counts of sexual assault following a jury trial that concluded on January 15,
