SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — “West Wing” and “Field of Dreams” actor Timothy Busfield has been indicted by a grand jury on four counts of criminal sexual contact with a child under age 13, a New Mexico prosecutor announced Friday.
The allegations are tied to Busfield's work as a director on the set of the TV series “The Cleaning Lady” from 2022 to 2024.
Busfield has denied the allegations, initially filed in court by police, and a defense attorney on Friday said he would “fight these charges at every stage.”
Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman announced the indictment in a social media post.
Busfield had turned himself in to authorities in January and was released from jail by a judge who found no pattern of criminal conduct or similar allegations involving children in Busfield's past.
Larry Stein, an attorney for Busfield, did not comment directly on the sexual contact charge in the indictment but said the grand jury declined to endorse grooming charges sought by prosecutors. Prosecutors declined to comment on what accusations it brought before the grand jury.
Stein said in a statement that a detention hearing already “exposed fatal weaknesses in the state’s evidence — gaps that no amount of charging decisions can cure.”
“Mr. Busfield will fight these charges at every stage and looks forward to testing the State’s case in open court,” the statement said.
An investigator with the Albuquerque Police Department said a boy reported that Busfield touched his private areas over his clothing when he was 7 years old and again when he was 8, according to the initial criminal complaint from police. The boy’s twin told authorities he was also touched by Busfield, but he didn’t say anything right away because he didn’t want to get in trouble, the complaint said.
The indictment — filed Friday in state District Court — reiterates allegations that Busfield “touched or applied force to the intimate parts” of one of the boys on several occasions.
At a detention hearing last month, Busfield’s attorneys pointed out that the children initially said during interviews with police that Busfield didn’t touch them inappropriately. Busfield’s attorneys then accused the boys’ parents of coaching their children toward incriminating statements after the boys lost lucrative roles on the show.
But Assistant District Attorney Savannah Brandenburg-Koch has called evidence of abuse against Busfield strong and specific, with support from medical findings and the boys' therapist. She also said witnesses expressed fear about potential retaliation and professional harm.
Prosecutors have outlined what they said was grooming behavior and abuse of power by Busfield over three decades.
In freeing Busfield on Jan. 20, state District Court Judge David Murphy said that while the crimes Busfield is accused of inherently are dangerous and involve children, prosecutors didn’t prove the public wouldn’t be safe if he’s released.
A grand jury indictment allows the case against Busfield to proceed toward possible trial without a preliminary courtroom hearing on evidence.
Busfield is best known for appearances on “The West Wing,” “Field of Dreams” and “Thirtysomething.”
FILE - Actor Timothy Busfield smiles before an NFL football game in Detroit, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
FILE - Timothy Busfield appears at the 2020 ABC Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour in Pasadena, Calif., on Jan. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)
MILAN (AP) — Vice President JD Vance met Friday with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni — one of the Trump administration's closer allies in Europe — during his trip to Italy for the Olympic Games.
Vance is on a weeklong visit that combines sports and diplomacy, meeting with Meloni at a time when U.S. relations with Europe have become increasingly strained under President Donald Trump, who has shaken up the rules-based order that has been at the center of U.S. foreign policy since World War II.
The vice president started his day at the Milano Ice Skating Arena, watching the opening session of the three-day team figure skating competition with his family and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. In the evening, he attended the Olympics opening ceremony.
His meeting with Meloni came in-between, when he headed to the Prefettura di Milano, a Milan palace now used as a municipal building. Their face-to-face lasted about an hour and was followed by a closed-door lunch.
Only a few minutes at the top of the meeting were open to the press, and Meloni began her remarks in Italian. After a moment, she switched to English, joking that Vance probably didn’t understand what she had been saying.
Vance quipped that he'd been able to learn Italian since last coming to Italy. He hadn't. His last visit was when he saw Meloni in Rome after meeting with Pope Leo XIV in May.
“I was saying that I’m happy to have you here to have the occasion to talk about our wonderful bilateral relation,” Meloni said.
The prime minister said they'd discuss several topics of bilateral cooperation, but also mentioned meeting at the Olympics, which she called “events that tell about values that keep together Italy and the U.S.” and “western civilization.”
While Meloni was speaking, Tilman Fertitta, the U.S. ambassador to Italy, walked in and greeted Vance, mentioning that, “It’s hard to get around." The security measures involved in staging the Olympics have meant traffic closures and other logistical headaches.
Vance’s office later released a statement saying he and Meloni also made a private visit to the Pinacoteca di Brera art museum for about half an hour.
The vice president's office said in a statement that during the meeting with the prime minster, she and Vance discussed the strength of bilateral relations between the nations, the Olympics and mutual efforts to improve the business and investment climate.
Meloni has cultivated a close relationship with Trump, visiting him at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in early January 2025, even before he took office for his second term. At the time, he called her a “fantastic woman” and the two have since praised each other.
More recently, however, Meloni has sided with top U.S. allies in Europe in opposing Trump's push to take control of Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark.
While where reporters were present, the two leaders only exchanged pleasantries. Vance and Rubio did not answer shouted questions about talks between the U.S. and Iran.
“In the spirit of the Olympics friendship, competition — competition based on rules — and just coming together around shared values, we’re very, very thrilled to be here, and we’ll have a great conversation about number of topics,” Vance told Meloni. He added that he'd been excited to go to the Olympics in Milan “pretty much since I became vice president.”
Weissert reported from Washington.
US Vice President JD Vance, center right, and second lady Usha Vance attend the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (Andreas Rentz/Pool Photo via AP)
JD Vance and his wife Usha applaud at the start of the Olympic opening ceremony at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)
Vice President JD Vance, center, and his wife Usha Vance applaud while Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States compete during the figure skating ice dance team event at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Vice President JD Vance, center, and his wife Usha Vance attend the figure skating ice dance team event at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, right, and US Vice President JD Vance hold a bilateral meeting during his visit to the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool Photo via AP)
Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, right, and US Vice President JD Vance hold a bilateral meeting during his visit to the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool Photo via AP)
