Timothy Busfield claims child sex abuse allegations are about 'revenge'

Timothy Busfield has claimed the criminal accusations against him are part of a revenge plot.

The actor/director, who is best known for his roles on West Wing and Thirtysomething, was charged in a criminal complaint filed this week in New Mexico with abusing two boys who were working with him on a TV show.

Prosecutors accuse Busfield of inappropriately touching the boys while he was directing them on the set of The Cleaning Lady in 2022.

At the time, prosecutors say, the child actors were aged seven and eight, and their parents reported the alleged crimes to the Albuquerque police two years later.

During a police interview, Busfield told detectives the show's lead actor, Elodie Yung, had told him the mother of the two boys "wanted revenge, and I'm going to get my revenge on Tim Busfield for not bringing her kids back for the final season", according to charging documents sighted by TMZ.

Busfield confirmed the boys were replaced at some point by a younger boy who had auditioned. Busfield said this angered the parents of the boys who were fired, and he subsequently received a phone call from Warner Brothers execs about a complaint filed against him.

Warner Bros, which produced the show, handed the investigation over to an outside firm. It has not been made public what the results of that investigation were.

Busfield's wife, Little House on the Prairie actor Melissa Gilbert, told police the couple had a previous "relationship" with the two boys and their family outside of work, according to the documents.

They admitted to giving the boys Christmas gifts and attending social functions with them.