Judge releases actor-director Timothy Busfield from custody

A judge on Tuesday ordered actor and director Timothy Busfield released from custody pending resolution of criminal charges alleging he inappropriately touched an 8-year-old child actor on the set of "The Cleaning Lady."

An attorney for Busfield, 68, argued in a two-hour hearing in 2nd Judicial District Court that the parents of twin boys at the center of the case sought revenge against Busfield after the boys were booted from the fourth season of the television drama.

Defense attorney Amber Fayerberg argued that the boys initially denied that they were abused in early interviews with police. Fayerberg played a brief portion of the recorded interviews Tuesday during the pretrial detention hearing.

Fayerberg argued that the boy's parents are "con artists" who had both a retaliatory and financial motive for coaching their sons to provide false testimony about Busfield's actions.

"If the boys said this never happened, why are we here?" Fayerberg told the judge. "We're here because those boys lost their role." A witness who testified for the defense Tuesday estimated the two boys were paid a combined total of $50,000 per episode for their roles in the series.

The Emmy Award-winning actor, bound in handcuffs and an orange Metropolitan Detention Center uniform, entered a courtroom packed with media and supporters. He faces felony charges of child abuse and two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor under 13, according to a criminal complaint filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.

Busfield amassed enormous support in his bid for pre-trial release, drawing 87 character references from Hollywood colleagues, including his wife, actress Melissa Gilbert, who attended the pre-trial detention hearing Tuesday.

Other testimonials came from colleagues in his long career in film and television, including castmates from the hit 1990s show “Thirtysomething,” to children he’s mentored or known, to family and lifelong friends, including a number of his high school classmates from East Landing High in Michigan.

Prosecutor Savannah Brandenburg-Koch argued that Busfield poses a danger to society if released and cited past allegations of sexual abuse leveled against him.

Brandenburg-Koch also attempted to use the 87 character references as evidence that people around Busfield reject the possibility that he is capable of sexual attacks.

"How can the court set conditions, knowing that all of these people blindly trust the defendant's word and not knowing any of the evidence that he's actually going to comply?" Brandenburg-Koch told the judge. "I also think it shows the power that the defendant has over the community this position, that they blindly believe him and that they won't report any violations to this court."

Judge David Murphy called evidence offered by a prosecutor of Busfield's alleged history of sexual abuse as "neutral" because Busfield has no criminal history and "these allegations have not been vetted by the judicial system for various reasons."

In ordering his release, Murphy prohibited Busfield from having contact with anyone under the age of 18 or any alleged victims or witnesses in the case.

The alleged victim, now 11, who is identified in court records as SL, and his twin brother both worked as child actors on "The Cleaning Lady," a joint production of Fox Entertainment and Warner Bros. Television that began production in 2020 in New Mexico and was cancelled in June 2025 after four seasons.

Alan Caudillo, director of photography for the series, testified Tuesday that Busfield directed one episode in season 2 and returned as a director and producer in seasons 3 and 4. He said the twins were released after season 3 because they appeared too old for their roles.

Brandenburg-Koch also argued that the child actors repeatedly gave convincing accounts of Busfield's abusive actions at the University of New Mexico Hospital and during a safe house interview in 2024 and 2025.

"The boys' allegations are supported by medical findings and their therapist, and again, their accounts were specific and not exaggerated," she said. "In this case, they were detailed. They were visual."

Albuquerque police filed a criminal complaint on Jan. 9, the same day a judge issued a warrant for Busfield's arrest. His attorneys said Busfield drove 2,000 miles to Albuquerque to turn himself in Jan. 13.

Also on Jan. 13, Busfield obtained both a polygraph test and an adult psychosexual evaluation that defense attorneys argued raised doubts about his guilt. Fayerberg also said that Busfield's talent agency dropped him as a result of the allegations.

"His life is ruined," she said. "His career is over in the span of six days. It's done."