Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert has finally spoken out about her husband Timothy Busfield's charges, which include two counts of criminal sexual contact with a minor (involving a boy under 13) and one count of child abuse. These charges relate to alleged inappropriate touching of a child actor on the set of the Fox crime/drama series The Cleaning Lady (2022-2025), which Busfield directed. Busfield has denied the allegations.
The show follows a Cambodian doctor who brings her young son to the United States for medical treatment.
Gilbert requested privacy during this time and publicly emphasized her support for him and their family through social media, statements from her publicist and a supportive letter to the court.
She deactivated her personal social media page after New Mexico officials issued an arrest warrant for Busfield, but on Monday, Gilbert went public again, this time on the Instagram page for her womens' lifestyle brand "Modern Prairie." The actor and former SAG-AFTRA president posted her message alongside a photo of her looking wistful while holding a coffee mug.
She wrote: "I’m sending you all my love and gratitude during this extraordinarily difficult time. Not only for Tim, me and our family, but in the collective heaviness so many of us seem to be carrying right now. Add an unexpected storm to the mix, and it can all feel like a bit too much... Thank you, truly, for the love, patience, and support you continue to show Tim and me. Thank you for helping me to feel safer, more grounded, and deeply held by this extraordinary community of women here at Modern Prairie."
The child actor accusing Busfield claims that when he was seven years old, the actor/director inappropriately touched him three or four times in private areas over his clothing, as stated in a criminal complaint filed with the Albuquerque Police Department. The boy also alleged that Busfield touched him five or six times a year later when he was eight. He did not report the incidents earlier because he was afraid there would be repercussions, given that Busfield was the director. The boy's mother eventually reported the abuse, which allegedly occurred between late 2022 and spring 2024, to Child Protective Services.
Earlier this month, Busfield traveled to New Mexico to turn himself in. Since then, another man has accused Busfield of sexually abusing his daughter several years prior.
Busfield is well-known for his roles on the TV series The West Wing and Thirtysomething, winning an Emmy for the latter, as well as for his role as Mark in the Oscar-nominated film Field of Dreams. He has been married to Gilbert, his third wife, for 12 years. Gilbert has a son with her second husband, Bruce Boxleitner, and an older son from her first marriage to Bo Brinkman. Busfield has three children from his prior marriages. ~Alexandra Heilbron