A New Mexico judge dismissed criminal sexual contact charges against actor Timothy Busfield — whose television and film credits include "The West Wing" and "Field of Dreams" — after finding that prosecutorial misconduct and procedural irregularities had undermined the validity of the grand jury process. State District Judge Joseph Montano issued the ruling on Friday, siding with the defence and clearing the way for the charges to be dropped.
Busfield has on multiple occasions denied the accusations, characterising them as fabrications driven by a desire for revenge. Prosecutors made no announcement regarding whether a fresh indictment would be pursued.
The charges arose in connection with Busfield's work directing "The Cleaning Lady," a television production that ran from 2022 through 2024. The parents of twin boys who had been removed from the production alleged that Busfield had made unwanted physical contact with the children while filming was underway in Albuquerque.
A criminal complaint lodged in January contained a statement from an Albuquerque Police Department investigator, who relayed that one of the children had disclosed two separate incidents of inappropriate touching by Busfield — once at age seven and again at age eight, both involving contact over clothing in the genital area. According to the complaint, the boy's twin brother reported to authorities that Busfield had touched him as well, though he provided no details about where the contact had occurred and said he had stayed quiet at the time out of fear of getting into trouble.
After surrendering to authorities, Busfield was released from custody ahead of trial, with a judge determining that his record contained no prior offences of a comparable nature involving children. A grand jury indictment followed within weeks, laying out charges that Busfield had made physical contact with the intimate areas of one of the boys on multiple separate occasions. The grand jury's formal charge removed the requirement for a preliminary review of the evidence before proceedings moved forward.
Busfield's defence attorneys drew attention to the fact that, in their first accounts to investigators, the boys had denied any physical contact of an inappropriate nature on his part. They further contended that the children's parents had directed them toward more serious versions of events only after the boys were removed from their positions on the production.
Busfield's legal team filed a motion in June seeking dismissal of the indictment, contending that prosecutors had disregarded an absence of evidence and erected procedural barriers that prevented grand jurors from receiving witness testimony. At a September proceeding, Busfield's lawyer, Amanda Fayerberg, introduced recorded voices of grand jurors requesting additional witnesses. Fayerberg argued that jurors had been incorrectly told subpoenas would be required to secure testimony from witnesses who were present at the proceedings and prepared to testify voluntarily, characterising the prosecution's conduct as a serious violation of its obligations to the court.
The Bernalillo County District Attorney, Staley, pushed back on two procedural grounds: that the defence had not followed the proper channels for presenting evidence to the grand jury, and that Busfield had gone beyond acceptable bounds during his three-hour testimony by directing grand jurors toward particular witnesses and exhibits.
Documents submitted by Busfield's attorneys reveal that the actor — known for a recurring part in the television drama "Thirtysomething" — informed jurors that the case had disrupted his home life and put pressure on those closest to him. Under oath, he described losing his job and being released by the agency that had represented him. Busfield also testified that he had no reason to conceal anything, and when questioned about claims that he had touched the children in an inappropriate manner, he denied the allegations, stating they were completely without foundation.
According to the prosecution's position, each count listed in the indictment carried a potential prison term of up to six years, with the possibility of that figure being increased through sentencing enhancements.
