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NEED TO KNOW
Timothy Busfield is facing another allegation of sexual abuse after he surrendered to police on Tuesday, Jan. 13
The actor is currently charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse, according to a statement by Bernalillo District Attorney Sam Bregman on Jan. 13
A pretrial detention motion filed Jan. 14 includes a new report of sexual abuse allegedly conducted by Busfield
Another allegation has been made againstTimothy Busfield.
The West Wingalum, 68, surrendered to the Albuquerque Police Department on Tuesday, Jan. 13 after a warrant for hisarrestwas issued days earlier. The warrant alleged that Busfield engaged in unlawful sexual conduct with two boys.
On Jan. 13, Busfield was charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse. Prosecutors are seeking to keep him detained while he awaits trial.
In a pretrial detention motion filed on Jan. 14 and obtained by PEOPLE, Busfield faces another accusation of sexual abuse.
The motion states that "another victim's father," Colin Swift, reported to law enforcement on Jan. 13 that Busfield allegedly had sexually abused Swift's daughter "several years ago" in Sacramento, Calif.
"While auditioning for [Busfield] at B Street Threatre, the 16-year-old reported that [Busfield] kissed her and put his hands down her pants and touched her privates," per the motion.
Busfield allegedly "begged the family to not report to law enforcement if he received therapy," and Swift, being a "therapist himself, thought at the time that was the best thing to do."
Busfield founded theB Street Theatrein 1986, then known as the Theatre for Children, Inc.
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The actor, who is married toMelissa Gilbertand best known for his roles inThe West WingandField of Dreams, was alleged to have engaged in unlawful sexual conduct with two boys, 11-year-old twins, whose identities were withheld from the public in the arrest warrant issued on Jan. 9.
Before he turned himself in to authorities, he filmed himself in a video obtained byTMZ. "I did not do anything," he said.
"Hi everybody, it's Tim," the video began. "I'm sure most of you know, that are watching this, that I was ordered to come to Albuquerque – I'm here now. I got the call Friday night, I had to get a lawyer. Saturday I got in the car, drove 2,000 miles to Albuquerque. I'm gonna confront these lies. They're horrible."
He continued, "They're all lies and I did not do anything to those little boys and I'm gonna fight it. I'm gonna fight it with a great team, and I'm gonna be exonerated, I know I am, because this is all so wrong and all lies."
He concluded by saying. "So hang in there and hopefully I'm out real soon and back to work. I love everybody for supporting me, thank you."
In the motion for pretrial detention, authorities are asking the judge to "detain" Busfield while trial is pending.
"The Defendant's repeated sexual touching of the victim's intimate areas, combined with deliberate grooming behaviors, establishes a sustained pattern of predatory conduct," the motion said. "This conduct demonstrates that the Defendant poses a serious and ongoing danger not only to the named victims, but to any child placed within his proximity. Sexual exploitation of children reflects a profound disregard for the physical safety, emotional well-being, and developmental health of minors, and it evidences a risk that cannot be adequately mitigated through supervision or conditional release."
In the Jan. 9 warrant, the parents of the victims said the boys met Busfield on the set of the FOX series,The Cleaning Lady, after Busfield joined as a director in season 2 (which aired in 2022), according to the arrest warrant. An investigation began on Nov. 1, 2024, after a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital (UNMH) alerted police about alleged sexual abuse.
Officer Marvin Brown alleged that two boys, 11-year-old twins were the subject of sex crimes by Busfield. One of the minors alleged that the incidents began when he was 7 years old, per the arrest warrant.
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The parents were advised by an attorney to take the children to UNMH, where they said professionals suggested the boys "were groomed," per the warrant. It was later determined, however, that the case did not meet authorities' acceptance criteria at the time.
Later, in October 2025, the victims' mother filed a police report and told Child Protective Services (CPS) that "her children both disclosed that there was sexual abuse by Timothy from around November 2022 to Spring 2024." However, according to the warrant, she was told that because physical abuse had not occurred, nothing could be done.
The mother told authorities on Sept. 2, 2025, and Sept. 22, 2025, that one of the boys told his counselor that Busfield inappropriately touched him.
When one of the victims was 10 years old, his therapist diagnosed him with moderate post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety following claims of "inappropriate touching."
The therapist said the child began "having nightmares about the director touching him and waking up scared," and claimed Busfield "had touched and rubbed his penis 3 or 4 times and appeared to be ashamed," per the warrant.
He also suffered from bed-wetting and other behavioral issues, the warrant alleges.
During an investigation, Busfield allegedly told police that the parents were upset their sons had been replaced with a younger actor who auditioned, according to the warrant. Shortly after, the actor got a call from Warner Bros., informing him they were investigating a complaint.
A representative at Warner Bros. Television told PEOPLE in a statement, "The health and safety of our cast and crew is always our top priority, especially the safety of minors on our productions. We take all allegations of misconduct very seriously and have systems in place to promptly and thoroughly investigate, and when needed, take appropriate action. [We] have been and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement."
Busfield was onceordered to pay $150,000 to a Minneapolis law firmafter rejecting Busfield's claim that the firm fabricated a sexual assault case against him, per a report.
In 1996, U.S. District Judge James Ideman ordered the actor, who is married to actressMelissa Gilbert, to reimburse the firm Messerli & Kramer the amount it cost to defend itself in a defamation suit filed by Busfield. After Busfield appealed, the parties settled the defamation case.
Busfield hadclaimed the firm made up a story that he sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl, perDeseretNews.com. The girl was an extra on the 1993 movieLittle Big League,which he directed, according to the outlet.
According to DeseretNews.com, Busfield settled the underlying lawsuit with the girl for an undisclosed amount.
In the Jan. 9 warrant, another allegation was mentioned, this one dating from March 18, 2012. "A twenty-eight-year-old woman accused Busfield of battery in an LA movie theater—alleging he slipped hands under clothes, touched genitals for four minutes," per the arrest warrant. There was no lawsuit filed and prosecutors "passed due to slim evidence," the warrant states, adding that Busfield "called it consensual."
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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