Timothy Busfield allegedly begged a father not to report him to police after the West Wing actor was accused of sexually abusing the man’s 16-year-old daughter, according to court documents submitted by the District Attorney’s Office in New Mexico.
The 68-year-old is currently facing charges of child sex abuse related to two twin actors Busfield worked with on the set of the Fox series, The Cleaning Lady. (Busfield, who served as the show’s executive producer and director, has denied the accusations.) Busfield turned himself in on Tuesday afternoon, following Albuquerque officials’ warrant on Friday for his arrest.
In a pretrial detention motion submitted Wednesday, prosecutors allege Busfield “has a documented pattern of sexual misconduct, abuse of authority, and grooming behavior,” according to court documents obtained by Rolling Stone. Prosecutors detailed two previously known instances where Busfield was accused of sexual assault, once in 1994 and a second incident in 2012. Busfield denied both accusations, and no criminal charges were ever filed.
And in a new accusation, prosecutors allege that after news of Busfield’s arrest went public, another victim’s father, Colin Swift, reported to law enforcement that his 16-year-old daughter was abused by Busfield “several years ago” in Sacramento, California. Busfield allegedly “kissed” the girl, and “put his hands down her pants and touched her privates.” The incident allegedly occurred when the girl was auditioning for Busfield at the Emmy-winning actor’s B Street Theatre, which he founded in 1986. (It was previously known as the Theatre for Children, Inc.)
“[Busfield] begged the family to not report to law enforcement if he received therapy,” the pretrial detention motion alleges. “Colin Swift, a therapist himself, thought at the time that was the best thing to do.” (Rolling Stone has contacted a representative for Busfield for further comment.)
Busfield will have his first court appearance on Wednesday afternoon. He is expected to appear virtually, a court spokesperson tells Rolling Stone. Busfield is charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse.
Before turning himself in, Busfield released a video statement where he denied the accusations and said he was prepared to fight the charges. “I’m going to confront these lies,” he said. “They’re horrible, they’re all lies, and I did not do anything to those little boys.”
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Although Busfield explained in his video that he learned of the warrant on Friday and took the weekend to hire an attorney and drive the 2,000 miles from New York to New Mexico, prosecutors claim it was a “calculated decision to submit to law enforcement only on terms most convenient to the Defendant.” They also called his video message “a willingness to prioritize personal narrative control and public relations over compliance with lawful court processes.”
Prosecutors are seeking to keep Busfield in custody ahead of his trial, arguing the actor’s “demonstrated disregard for boundaries, authority and compliance, no condition or combination of conditions of release can reasonably protect the victims or the community.”
“Accordingly the only way to ensure the safety of children and preserve the integrity of these proceedings is to detain the Defendant in custody pending resolution of this matter at trial,” the motion adds.
From Rolling Stone US
