Actor Timothy Busfield arrested

[JrzyGirl70]

Authorities in New Mexico issued an arrest warrant Friday for director and Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield to face a child sex abuse charge.

An investigator with the Albuquerque Police Department filed a criminal complaint in support of the charge, which says a child reported that Busfield touched him inappropriately. The acts allegedly occurred on the set of “The Cleaning Lady,” a TV series Busfield directed and acted in.

Actor Timothy Busfield accused of child sex abuse in New Mexico

The acts allegedly occurred on the set of “The Cleaning Lady,” a TV series Busfield directed and acted in.

www.nbcnewyork.com

 

[ChiefJustice]

Does American law not give automatic anonymity to CSA survivors? I mean the article hasn't named them but it's not hard to work out who it is. Poor kids. In the UK anything that could identify them would not be allowed in the media

 

[Inthedetails]

Authorities in New Mexico issued an arrest warrant Friday for director and Emmy Award-winning actor Timothy Busfield to face a child sex abuse charge.

An investigator with the Albuquerque Police Department filed a criminal complaint in support of the charge, which says a child reported that Busfield touched him inappropriately. The acts allegedly occurred on the set of “The Cleaning Lady,” a TV series Busfield directed and acted in.

Actor Timothy Busfield accused of child sex abuse in New Mexico

The acts allegedly occurred on the set of “The Cleaning Lady,” a TV series Busfield directed and acted in.

www.nbcnewyork.com

An arrest warrant was issued but LE can't find Busfield.

The U.S. Marshals Service has stepped in to help locate Timothy Busfield after an arrest warrant was issued for the actor by the Albuquerque Police Department (APD)....

Timothy Busfield’s Location Remains Unknown, U.S. Marshals Step in to Assist Police 3 Days After Arrest Warrant Issued

Albuquerque Police confirmed to PEOPLE that they are working with the U.S. Marshals Service to locate and arrest Busfield

www.yahoo.com

 

[Inthedetails]

Paywall, but headline alone provides info:

NBC Pulls ‘Law & Order’ Episode With Actor After Child Sex Abuse Allegations

The actor has not yet been arrested on the charges.

www.thedailybeast.com

 

[tlcya]

Melissa Gilbert deactivates social media amid husband Timothy Busfield's abuse charges

I do feel for Melissa Gilbert. She had a brand (Modern Prairie) that was taking off and now this. All the headlines about her buying the alleged victims Christmas gifts were slanted to suggest she was a part of some sort of grooming on behalf of her husband when I can see totally innocent and generous reasons for her having done so. I mean, if my spouse asks me to buy children we both know and who work with my spouse I would probably not think - he is grooming them and this is me helping.

 

[mickey2942]

Apparently, he is on the run, and in the wind right now. I find that interesting. I wonder where he is? Does his wife, Melissa Gilbert know where he is?

US Marshals helping locate West Wing star amid child sex abuse charges

A warrant has been issued and Federal authorities are helping to search for West Wing actor Timothy Busfield, who is accused of inappropriately touching a minor on a TV show set.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Eli9]

I have a feeling Busfield's lawyer is working on getting him to the right authorities at the moment.

Interestingly I met this guy when I lived in Sacramento many years ago. He had a theater group for children which is noted in the article.

As Timothy Busfield's child sex abuse allegations come to light, wife Melissa Gilbert goes dark on Instagram

As allegations of child sex abuse against Timothy Busfield come to light, his wife, actor Melissa Gilbert, has gone dark on Instagram. The link to her official Instagram account leads to an error message.

www.latimes.com

in his interview, he allegedly said later, “I don’t remember those boys” and “I don’t remember overtly tickling the boys ever, but it wouldn’t be uncommon for me.”
..

 

[mickey2942]

I have a feeling Busfield's lawyer is working on getting him to the right authorities at the moment.

Interestingly I met this guy when I lived in Sacramento many years ago. He had a theater group for children which is noted in the article.

As Timothy Busfield's child sex abuse allegations come to light, wife Melissa Gilbert goes dark on Instagram

As allegations of child sex abuse against Timothy Busfield come to light, his wife, actor Melissa Gilbert, has gone dark on Instagram. The link to her official Instagram account leads to an error message.

www.latimes.com

in his interview, he allegedly said later, “I don’t remember those boys” and “I don’t remember overtly tickling the boys ever, but it wouldn’t be uncommon for me.”
..

I noticed that comment about "tickling". I hated that as a child. Completely helpless.

 

[Inthedetails]

I noticed that comment about "tickling". I hated that as a child. Completely helpless.

I HATED it too. It feels like being trapped and hurt....and then mocked, "What? Don't you like to laugh?"

jmopinion

 

[iamshadow21]

I noticed that comment about "tickling". I hated that as a child. Completely helpless.

Many children do, because the people who do it habitually to children in their orbit often don't respect a child's boundaries or saying no.

Kids can learn to associate it with a lack of control, humiliation, or even pain, depending on how long it is done to them or if they're held down.

It's a very common grooming step for paederasts.

MOO

 

[Eli9]

The criminal charges are
2 counts of Criminal Sexual Contact of a Minor (child under 13) F3
1 count of Child Abuse (Open Count) F

 

[nhmemorymaker]

Many children do, because the people who do it habitually to children in their orbit often don't respect a child's boundaries or saying no.

Kids can learn to associate it with a lack of control, humiliation, or even pain, depending on how long it is done to them or if they're held down.

It's a very common grooming step for paederasts.

MOO

Though not so common anymore, it really was just a thing back decades ago....
And it was not the act, it was the reaction, because there were so many.

God, I remember tickling so clearly. Not evil memories at all....but uncomfortable ones, none the less.
And, I even remember friends relatives, whoever, trying to remember where one or another had the worst reaction.... the feet, the ribs, the stomach.
Weird subject, all in all.
In the 2020s.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

I have a feeling Busfield's lawyer is working on getting him to the right authorities at the moment.

Interestingly I met this guy when I lived in Sacramento many years ago. He had a theater group for children which is noted in the article.

As Timothy Busfield's child sex abuse allegations come to light, wife Melissa Gilbert goes dark on Instagram

As allegations of child sex abuse against Timothy Busfield come to light, his wife, actor Melissa Gilbert, has gone dark on Instagram. The link to her official Instagram account leads to an error message.

www.latimes.com

in his interview, he allegedly said later, “I don’t remember those boys” and “I don’t remember overtly tickling the boys ever, but it wouldn’t be uncommon for me.”
..

I do hope your first line is true. I hate the idea of him being "on the run"

 

[Inthedetails]

I do hope your first line is true. I hate the idea of him being "on the run"

I'm concerned about self-harm, actually, so being in negotiations is a much better option. Let's hope that is the case. jmo

 

[Ontario Mom]

A doctor alerted LE well over a year ago that suspected grooming and abuse was happening and they declined to press charges? I do wonder what the reason given for that was. It sure seems to me the information initially coming from a doctor holds a lot of weight.

"The investigation into the “Stripes” star’s alleged crimes kicked off in November 2024 when a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital alerted police about suspected sexual abuse and grooming involving the minors, per the warrant. Although the APD initially declined to press charges against Busfield, the case was said to have been reopened in September 2025 when one of the kids told his counselor and then pediatrician that Busfield “touched him on his penis and bottom,” the affidavit claims." US Marshals join search to locate ‘West Wing’ actor Timothy Busfield following child sex abuse charges

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Actor Timothy Busfield turns himself in amid child sex abuse allegations

An arrest warrant was issued for Busfield last week by authorities in New Mexico.

www.nbcnews.com

The U.S. Marshals Service has joined the search for actor Timothy Busfield after a child accused him of sex abuse in New Mexico.

Authorities have been unable to locate Busfield since authorities in New Mexico issued an arrest warrant for him last week. The warrant was issued after two children reported that Busfield allegedly touched them inappropriately on the set of the Fox series “The Cleaning Lady” in which he directed and acted.

The Marshals Service confirmed Tuesday that it is assisting the Albuquerque Police Department in the search for Busfield and the investigation into the alleged incident...

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

This NYT report probably has a paywall, but it is worthwhile reading.

The Case Against Tickling (Published 2020)

Laughter doesn’t always signal enjoyment, and “stop” should mean “stop.”

www.nytimes.com

When she was a young child, Ashley Austrew’s father would hold her down and tickle her so hard she felt momentarily paralyzed. He thought they were having fun — the tickling made her laugh, after all — but she dreaded it. More than once, she rolled off the couch and hit her head on the coffee table.

Tickling was common in Austrew’s family, along with other kinds of roughhousing, such as a game in which her dad would pretend to sleep as she and her two sisters tiptoed around him, and then he’d pop up and playfully grab one of them. This game, she said, felt “safe, fun and funny.”

But the tickling was different.

“I didn’t like it, but also there was this pressure to like it, so it put me in a weird position,” said Austrew, a freelance journalist who lives in Omaha, Neb. “It felt like there was an unspoken social contract that adults were supposed to tickle kids to make them laugh, and kids were supposed to like being tickled.”

It’s a familiar story. Many of us have memories of being tickled in a way that made us feel annoyed, uncomfortable or even violated. The idea of unwelcome tickling dates as far back as Socrates, who said it brought more pain than pleasure. Yet plenty of children, my 3-year-old daughter included, genuinely seem to enjoy it. Tickling sends her into fits of delighted giggles. The moment we stop, she demands more.

So what do parents need to know? Is there a right way to tickle our kids, and what are the dangers if we get it wrong? How do we tickle without violating boundaries? And should we be tickling at all?...

 

[sds71]

Actor Timothy Busfield turned himself in Tuesday to authorities after a child accused him of sex abuse in New Mexico, a source familiar with the matter tells NBC News.

Earlier Tuesday, the U.S. Marshals Service confirmed it had joined the Albuquerque Police Department in its search for the actor. Authorities had been unable to locate Busfield since authorities in New Mexico issued an arrest warrant for him last week.

Timothy Busfield Surrenders to Police, Denies Child Sex Abuse Crimes in New Video: 'I'm Going to Fight It'

Timothy Busfield has surrendered to police. He's the husband of actress Melissa Gilbert and faces two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse, according to a copy of the arrest warrant obtained by PEOPLE.

people.com

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Updated NBC report:

Actor Timothy Busfield turns himself in amid child sex abuse allegations

An arrest warrant was issued for Busfield last week by authorities in New Mexico.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Inthedetails]

Actor Timothy Busfield turned himself in Tuesday to authorities after a child accused him of sex abuse in New Mexico, a source familiar with the matter tells NBC News.

Earlier Tuesday, the U.S. Marshals Service confirmed it had joined the Albuquerque Police Department in its search for the actor. Authorities had been unable to locate Busfield since authorities in New Mexico issued an arrest warrant for him last week.

Timothy Busfield Surrenders to Police, Denies Child Sex Abuse Crimes in New Video: 'I'm Going to Fight It'

Timothy Busfield has surrendered to police. He's the husband of actress Melissa Gilbert and faces two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse, according to a copy of the arrest warrant obtained by PEOPLE.

people.com

Good. I was worried something dire to him happened.

Now, let's proceed with this case.

jmo