A grand jury in New Mexico has indicted actor Timothy Busfield on four counts of criminal sexual contact with a child.
Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman announced the indictment Friday in a press release.
“As with all criminal proceedings, Mr. Busfield is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. This case will proceed through the judicial process and is expected to move forward to trial,” Bregman said. “The case will be prosecuted by the Special Victims Unit of the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office.”
Bregman emphasized that “protecting children remains a top priority for his office” and the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office “remains committed to doing everything possible to protect children and ensure justice for victims.”
The development comes two weeks after Busfield was released from jail in New Mexico while he awaits trial on child sexual abuse charges.
Bernalillo County District Court Judge David A. Murphy rejected New Mexico prosecutors’ bid to keep Busfield, 68, detained. The prosecutors had outlined what they said was grooming behaviour and abuse of power by the Thirtysomething actor over three decades.
Busfield’s charges stem from allegations he inappropriately touched a minor on the set of the TV series, The Cleaning Lady, that he was directing in New Mexico.
Busfield’s lawyers argued the actor wasn’t a danger to the community and shouldn’t be behind bars while he awaits trial.
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Murphy said while the crimes Busfield is accused of are inherently dangerous and involve children, prosecutors didn’t prove he posed a risk to public safety if released.
The judge also said that the risk of Busfield committing more crimes “can be remedied through different conditions of release.”
Under the order, Busfield may not contact the alleged victims or their families, discuss the case with witnesses or have any unsupervised contact with minors. He has also been ordered to appear for all his future court dates and is not allowed to possess any firearms or dangerous weapons or consume any alcohol or illegal drugs.
The ruling came a week after Busfield surrendered to the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) after an arrest warrant had been issued for the director.
According to the criminal complaint, an investigator with the APD said a boy reported that Busfield touched him on his private areas over his clothing on one occasion when he was seven years old and a second time when he was eight. The boy’s twin brother told authorities he was also touched by Busfield, but he did not specify where and said he didn’t tell anyone because he feared he would get in trouble, the complaint said.
In a video shared before turning himself in, Busfield called the allegations against him “lies.”
“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 said.
— With files from The Associated Press
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