Melissa Gilbert gives first interview on TV about Timothy Busfield charges

Anthony Robledo, Anna Kaufman and Brendan Morrow, USA TODAYMon, April 6, 2026 at 12:38 PM UTC

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Melissa Gilbert is ready to talk about the indictment of her husband, Timothy Busfield, on child sex-crimes charges.

The "Little House on the Prairie" actress, 61, sat down with "Good Morning America" host George Stephanopoulos to discuss her husband's arrest in January and everything that has followed, which she called "the most traumatizing experience of our lives."

"Our life, as we knew it, is done," she told Stephanopoulos in an interview that aired April 6. "We are grieving what we had. All of our plans, all of our dreams, all of our ideas, all of our projects − for Tim, it's done. He's canceled. Even if he's exonerated, he will always be that guy."

Gilbert described Busfield as the "last person in the world who would hurt a child" and said that "if I thought for a second that Tim Busfield hurt a child, he'd have a lot more to worry about than prison." She also told Stephanopoulos she has never doubted her husband's innocence.

1 / 0Melissa Gilbert supports Timothy Busfield in court amid child sex abuse charges

Actor and director Timothy Busfield is be eligible for release from a New Mexico jail as he faces charges of child sex abuse, a judge ruled on Tuesday, Jan. 20, during a pretrial hearing in New Mexico. The ruling was made during Busfield's first in-person appearance in a New Mexico courtroom. A tearful Melissa Gilbert, who was seated behind her husband in the gallery, quietly celebrated the judge's decision.

"I know this man in my bones. No one knows him better than I do. I know literally everything about him," she said, adding that he is "an honorable, caring, generous human being" and she is "100% confident he will be exonerated."

Busfield was charged on Jan. 9 with child sex abuse and was arrested soon after in connection with allegations of abusing minors on the set of Fox's "The Cleaning Lady." A New Mexico grand jury indicted him on Feb. 6 on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a child.

When asked what justice will look like in the case, Gilbert told Stephanopoulos it would include "exoneration, an apology," and "freedom from this cloud."

Gilbert previously withheld from speaking about her husband's case to honor the request of his legal team, she said in a Jan. 13 statement to People and Us Weekly, where a representative said Gilbert stands with Busfield and would address the public at the appropriate time. She said on "GMA" she decided to speak out now because "we've been hearing and reading too much untruth." She also said she was not "capable" of doing so beforehand because "it's been a very traumatic time."

Though Busfield did not participate in the interview, Gilbert said that "when the time is right," he will "tell the truth of all of these past allegations."

Melissa Gilbert and Timothy Busfield pose at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival on June 20, 2023.Melissa Gilbert called Timothy Busfield 'my rock, my partner in business and life'

Gilbert has stood by her husband throughout the case. In January, she wrote one of more than 70 letters of support for the "West Wing" actor, in which she called him "my love, my rock, my partner in business and life."

"I began this letter with logic, but now the feelings have taken over. I can’t help it. I only want this extraordinary man safe and whole," she wrote to a judge of the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court. "So, I will close by asking you to please, please, take care of my sweet husband. As he is my protector, I am his, but I cannot protect him now and I think that, more than anything else, is what is truly breaking my heart."

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Gilbert and Busfield met in the 1980s and frequently crossed paths for decades before pursuing a relationship in 2012 and getting married in 2013.

1 / 0See Melissa Gilbert, from 'Little House' to 'Dancing with the 'Stars'

Melissa Gilbert became part of our cultural history at age 8 when she took on the role of Laura Ingalls in the television adaptation of "The Little House on the Prairie". Since then, the actress has continued to make waves as a performer and entrepreneur. See her life in the spotlight, beginning here at "The Little House on the Prairie" 50th anniversary cast reunion and festival in Simi Valley, California on March 23, 2024.

What is Timothy Busfield accused of?

Between late 2022 and early 2024, Busfield allegedly abused two young actors, who were 7 and 8 at the time, as they worked on "The Cleaning Lady," according to prosecutors. The actor, who also served as director on the show, has denied any wrongdoing.

Busfield has called the allegations an act of retaliation after the boys were recast on the show. In several court appearances, the actor has appeared in an orange prison uniform, as Gilbert watched from the courtroom.

One child alleged that Busfield touched his genitals several times; both said Busfield touched them inappropriately and instructed them to call him "Uncle Tim."

1 / 0See actors Timothy Busfield and Melissa Gilbert together in photos

"Little House on the Prairie" actor Melissa Gilbert announced that she will support her husband, "West Wing" actor Timothy Busfield, amid alleged child sex abuse claims against him, in a statement provided to People magazine and Us Weekly. The couple married in 2013.See them in pictures together through the years, beginning here at the opening night party for "Medea" at the BAM Harvey Theater on Jan. 30, 2020, in New York City.

According to the criminal complaint, the children's mother reported the incidents to Child Protective Services. One child has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety, and feared retaliation from Busfield if the alleged abuse was disclosed, the complaint alleges. In 2024, University of New Mexico Hospital staff members requested an investigation because it appeared the boys were being groomed.

According to the affidavit, Busfield acknowledged to police in a phone interview that the set was a "playful environment" and that he had probably tickled the boys. Production assistants told Albuquerque police that Busfield was sometimes touchy or unprofessional.

Four women came forward with new allegations against Timothy Busfield

During a motion for pretrial detention on Jan. 14, Colin Swift, the father of an alleged victim, said he told law enforcement the day prior that Busfield sexually abused his daughter "several years ago" in California.

Since Busfield's arrest, at least four women have told police that the Emmy Award-winning actor and director groped their breasts and genitals and forced himself on them, dating from 1993 to 2000. One said she was a 16-year-old community theater intern when Busfield allegedly pushed his hand into her pants and his tongue into her mouth.

The women shared their stories with an Albuquerque police detective in January, according to six video interviews with the women that USA TODAY obtained from the Second Judicial District Court in New Mexico under a public records request.

A trial date has been set for May 2027 in New Mexico for the child sex-abuse charges.

Contributing: Laura Trujillo and Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Melissa Gilbert speaks out about husband Timothy Busfield allegations

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