Timothy Busfield, the 68-year-old actor best known for his role on The West Wing, has pleaded not guilty to four counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor. The charges involve children under the age of 13.
The plea was entered on Feb. 10 in New Mexico's Second Judicial District Court, four days after a Bernalillo County grand jury handed down the indictment. The following day, Busfield waived his arraignment and all pretrial court appearances. Judge Joseph Montano granted the request on Feb. 18.
A scheduling conference is set for March 10 at 8:30 a.m. An initial witness list was issued on Feb. 13.
The grand jury indictment, announced by Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman on Feb. 6, charges Busfield with four counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor, each classified as a third-degree felony. Court documents indicate all counts pertain to events in October 2022 and September 2023.
A warrant issued by the Albuquerque Police Department on Jan. 9 alleged that Busfield engaged in unlawful sexual conduct with two 11-year-old boys, whose identities have been withheld. Busfield surrendered to police on Jan. 13 and was initially charged with two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse. The grand jury indictment expanded the charges to four counts.
He was released from custody in New Mexico on Jan. 20.
Busfield has publicly denied the allegations in forceful terms. Speaking to PEOPLE, he said:
"They're all lies and I did not do anything to those little boys and I'm gonna fight it. I'm gonna fight it with a great team, and I'm gonna be exonerated, I know I am, because this is all so wrong and all lies."
His attorney, Larry Stein, told PEOPLE that Busfield was "absolutely shocked" by the charges.
"He's devastated and will defend himself, because these are absolutely false allegations."
Following the judge's decision to grant the pretrial waiver, Stein said Busfield "feels wonderful" and can now reunite with his wife, actress Melissa Gilbert, who Stein described as "very, very excited" about Busfield's release.
Busfield is not a household name on the level of a Spacey or a Weinstein, but he is no obscure figure either. Beyond The West Wing, he starred in ABC's For Life and served as a director on the FOX series The Cleaning Lady, which ran from January 2022 until June 2025. He has been a working member of the entertainment industry for decades.
And that is precisely the point. The pattern in Hollywood is never limited to the marquee names. For every headline-dominating scandal, some cases move more quietly through the courts, drawing less public fury and less media scrutiny. The machinery of accountability should not depend on how famous the accused happens to be.
The allegations here are grave. Four felony counts. Two boys, both 11 years old at the time. Events allegedly spanning from October 2022 to September 2023. These are not ambiguous circumstances open to generous interpretation. A grand jury reviewed the evidence and found enough to indict on every count.
Of course, an indictment is not a conviction. Busfield has every right to his defense, and the presumption of innocence exists for essential reasons. But the waiver of all pretrial appearances is worth noting. It is a legal maneuver, perfectly within his rights, that ensures the actor will not have to set foot in a Bernalillo County courtroom until the case advances to its next significant stage. Convenient for someone who lives in the public eye.
The March 10 scheduling conference will set the trajectory of this case. Witness lists are being assembled. The prosecution, under DA Bregman, will have to lay out its evidence in full. Busfield's defense team will mount what they promise will be an aggressive fight.
For conservatives who have long argued that the entertainment industry harbors predators behind a curtain of progressive self-congratulation, cases like this are a grim reminder. Hollywood spent years lecturing the country about morality, about who deserves a platform and who deserves to be silenced. It built entire award ceremonies around its own virtue. And yet the industry continues to produce defendants in cases involving the most vulnerable victims imaginable.
The system will do its work. The evidence will be weighed. But two families in Albuquerque are living with something no legal proceeding can undo. Whatever the outcome of this case, that fact does not change.
Eleven years old.
