Judge dismisses child sex abuse charges against actor Timothy Busfield, allows possible refile

A New Mexico state court judge has dismissed child sexual abuse charges against actor and director Timothy Busfield, ruling that prosecutors mishandled the grand jury process. The decision leaves prosecutors free to pursue new charges.

Judge Joseph Montano granted Busfield's motion to dismiss the indictment on Friday, according to The Guardian. He found the prosecution did not act in a fair and impartial manner during the grand jury proceedings, the formal process in which citizens decide whether a case should go to trial.

The judge said prosecutors failed to properly instruct grand jurors on procedures for requesting testimony from additional witnesses. The prosecutor incorrectly told jurors that at least eight of them had to agree before a witness could be called.

Montano found that instruction had the practical effect of unilaterally withholding witnesses requested by grand jurors. Busfield's lawyers had accused Bernalillo County prosecutors of misconduct in the case.

Busfield, 69, was charged in February in a four-count indictment accusing him of criminal sexual contact with a child, stemming from allegations that he groped one of twin boys. Prosecutors alleged the contact occurred over a two-year period when the boys were aged seven and eight, during breaks in production on the Albuquerque set of The Cleaning Lady. Busfield denied allegations that he improperly touched the brothers.

Busfield is known for roles on the television series The West Wing and Thirtysomething and for appearing in the film Field of Dreams. His attorney, Amber Fayerberg, said he was relieved and grateful after reading the dismissal decision.

Prosecutors said they had not yet decided whether to seek another indictment, according to The Guardian.