Their marriage was put to the test when Busfield was charged with two counts of sexual contact with a minor and child abuse in January. In the criminal complaint, the parents of two boys who appeared on The Cleaning Lady accused the actor-director of touching the children multiple times on the set of the Fox series between November 2022 and the spring of 2024.
The Albuquerque Police Department issued an arrest warrant on January 9. Busfield turned himself in around 2:30 p.m. on January 13, and he was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque.
“He wants to turn himself in because he wants to clear his name and reputation,” Busfield’s attorney, Larry Stein, said in a statement. “He didn’t do anything wrong. These accusations are false, as the investigator from the independent law firm found.”
Stein has also repeatedly maintained Busfield’s innocence since the case began.
Meanwhile, Gilbert told Good Morning America‘s George Stephanopoulos that the development was the “most traumatizing experience of [their] lives.”
“[He’s] the last person in the world who would hurt a child,” she pointed out. “And believe me, if I thought for a second that Tim Busfield hurt a child, he’d have a lot more to worry about than prison.”
Another bombshell allegation accused Busfield of groping a 16-year-old girl while auditioning at Sacramento’s B Street Theatre several years earlier. The document alleged Busfield “kissed her, put his hands down her pants and touched her privates.”
Amid the accusations, Busfield was released on the evening of January 20 pending trial on child sexual abuse charges. He was then indicted on four child sexual abuse charges on February 6, though he has since filed a motion on June 18 asking a New Mexico court to dismiss his indictment.
“The state has abdicated its role of administering justice and instead pursued an indictment against Mr. Busfield at the cost of evidence, Mr. Busfield’s rights, and the independence and integrity of the grand jury,” the filing stated.