Grand jury indicts actor Tim Busfield
on child sex abuse charges
Feb. 6 (UPI) -- A New Mexico grand jury on Friday indicted actor Timothy Busfield on four counts that accuse him of criminal sexual contact of a child.
Each charge carries a minimum sentence of three years in prison if Busfield, 68, is found guilty, according to New Mexico law.
"As with all criminal proceedings, Mr. Busfield is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law," Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman said in a social media post.
"This case will proceed through the judicial process and is expected to move forward to trial," he said, adding that the Special Victims Unit of the Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office will prosecute the case.
Bregman said protecting children is his top priority and the Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office "remains committed to doing everything possible to protect children and ensure justice for victims."
Busfield's attorney, Larry Stein, said the indictment was expected but called the case a weak one.
"As the saying goes, a grand jury will indict a ham sandwich," Stein told NBC News.
He called the case against Busfield "fundamentally unsound" and said it "cannot be proven at trial."
Stein suggested the case is "driven by something other than the facts or the law" and said "Mr. Busfield will fight these charges at every stage and looks forward to testing the state's case in open court -- where evidence matters -- not behind closed doors."
He has pleaded not guilty to all charges filed against him after allegations by two boys who had been cast members of the Fox television series The Cleaning Lady, in which Busfield acted and directed from 2022 to 2024.
Busfield accused the mother of the two boys of falsely accusing him because he did not cast the two boys in the series' final season.
Bernalillo County Deputy District Attorney Savannah Brandenburg-Koch said the claims against Busfield are genuine during a January detention hearing.
A photography director who worked on the show said he never witnessed any inappropriate behavior while testifying during the same hearing.
The television show's co-producer, Warner Bros., undertook an independent investigation of the claims and said no evidence was found to support the claims against Busfield, his attorney argued.
Presiding Judge David Murphy ordered Busfield to be released on his own recognizance after ruling he is not a danger to the community or a flight risk.
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