Timothy Busfield faces child sex abuse charges and has a warrant for his arrest in Albuquerque, New Mexico following an investigation, according to local media reports.
Court documents reviewed Friday by KOAT show two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor and an open count of child abuse against Busfield, stemming from an investigation into his relationship with child actors he directed on Fox’s “The Cleaning Lady.” He directed episodes of the series from 2022-2025.
Representatives for Busfield did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment. The show’s studio, Warner Bros. Television, noted in a statement, “The health and safety of our cast and crew is always our top priority, especially the safety of minors on our productions. We take all allegations of misconduct very seriously and have systems in place to promptly and thoroughly investigate, and when needed, take appropriate action. We are aware of the current charges against Mr. Busfield and have been and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement.”
The investigation reportedly began in November 2024, when a doctor called police to the University of New Mexico Hospital. The responding officer spoke to the parents of two boys who were actors on the series. The “West Wing” and “Field of Dreams” star allegedly told the boys to call him “Uncle Tim” and “grew closer to the boys” while working with them.
The mother told the officer that she had asked her then-11-year-old children “if anyone had ever touched them in a manner that made them feel uncomfortable,” according to the affidavit. “The children responded by asking, ‘You mean like Uncle Tim?’”
The boys, twins, were allegedly touched inappropriately in “private areas” on a bedroom set for the series, one of the boys told forensic interviewers.
The affidavit noted that, prior to Busfield joining the production, parents of child actors were given iPads to monitor their children on-set, per safety protocols. This reportedly changed following Busfield’s arrival. Production assistants corroborated that Busfield exhibited “abnormal behavior” and occasionally interacted unsupervised with the children on set.
Busfield allegedly denied inappropriate conduct when interviewed by Albuquerque police in November 2025, saying that the accusations were “revenge” for the children not being involved in the show’s final season. The actor reportedly admitted it was “highly likely” that he picked up or tickled the children in the “playful environment” of the set, but that such conduct was not “weird” and would have been done in front of others.
In addition to “Field of Dreams” and “The West Wing,” Busfield is best known for his work on “thirysomething” as Elliot Weston. He was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award four times for the role, winning once in 1991.
TheWrap will update this story as it develops.
