An arrest warrant filed in New Mexico alleges that actor Timothy Busfield engaged in unlawful sexual conduct with two minor boys and that his wife, actress Melissa Gilbert, bought them Christmas gifts as part of a relationship that investigators say extended beyond professional contact.
The warrant, issued Friday by the Albuquerque Police Department, names Busfield, 68, in connection with alleged sexual abuse involving 11-year-old twins. One of the boys told investigators the incidents began when he was seven, according to the document. The minors’ identities were withheld.
In the warrant, Officer Marvin Brown wrote that both Busfield and Gilbert acknowledged having a personal relationship with the children and their family outside of work. During interviews, the couple told police they had attended social gatherings with the family and had purchased Christmas presents for the boys.
Brown cited the gift-giving again in his summary, writing that Busfield invited the family to gatherings and that Gilbert’s role in buying presents appeared intended “to foster closeness.”
The investigation began in November 2024, after a physician at the University of New Mexico Hospital alerted authorities to suspected sexual abuse. According to the warrant, the boys’ parents said their children were child actors who met Busfield while working on the Fox television series “The Cleaning Lady”, where Busfield served as a director. The show aired from 2022 until 2025.
At the direction of an attorney, the parents took the boys to the hospital, where medical professionals suggested they may have been groomed. The case, however, was not initially accepted by authorities under existing criteria, the warrant states.
Nearly a year later, in October 2025, the boys’ mother filed a police report and contacted Child Protective Services, telling investigators that both children had disclosed sexual abuse by Busfield dating from late 2022 through the spring of 2024. She was later informed, according to the document, that because physical abuse was not evident at that time, the case could not proceed.
During the renewed investigation, Busfield told police he believed the parents were upset after their sons were replaced on the show by a younger actor, the warrant says. He later received notice from Warner Bros. Television that the company was reviewing a complaint.
In a statement, a Warner Bros. spokesperson said the studio treats all allegations of misconduct seriously and prioritizes the safety of minors on its productions. The company said it is cooperating with law enforcement.
The warrant also notes that Busfield had faced sexual assault allegations in the 1990s that did not result in charges.
Busfield is known for his role on The West Wing. Gilbert, a former child star best known for Little House on the Prairie, married Busfield in 2013 after reconnecting years after first meeting. In recent months, Gilbert had posted on social media about child exploitation issues, though she has not publicly addressed the allegations involving her husband.
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