Crime Stories with Nancy Grace
'LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRE' STAR SOBS IN COURT OVER SEX CHARGES
21 Jan 2026
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
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Guaranteed human. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Little House on the Prairie star sobs in court over sex charges. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories.
I want to thank you for being with us.
We all know who Melissa Gilbert is, the star of Little House on the Prairie that ran for years and years and years. People watched her grow up, and here she is now. But many people didn't recognize the name Timothy Busfield. But I bet you recognize this.
Chapter 2: What charges is Timothy Busfield facing in court?
Quiz show, Field of Dreams, Revenge of the Nerds. Wow. Blue Bloods, Striking Distance, Lizzie McGuire, Entourage, Sleepy Hollow, Matlock, The Client List, West Wing, Lois and Clark, Joan of Arcadia, Stripes. It goes on and on and on. This is us, Graceland, FBI Most Wanted. I've got reams of titles. Timothy Busville connected to all of these hits.
There he is now, a famous, famous actor, director, now brought in court in shackles for
Chapter 3: What allegations have been made against Timothy Busfield?
after this.
At least 10 heavily armed U.S. Marshals from the New York Regional Task Force gather at the upstate home of award-winning actor director Timothy Busfield. The agents wearing helmets and protective gear use a battering ram to reach the door, gaining access to the home, not knowing what they will find as the property is searched for evidence.
That from our friends at Daily Mail. And you see the use of a battering ram, which is very, very unusual. To Chris Melcher joining us, high-profile celebrity lawyer, partner Wolzer Melcher. Question to you, Melcher, how often have you seen a battering ram used to get to a defendant?
The battering ram seems excessive, but I have definitely seen it in my practice when law enforcement enters a home, which is an inherently dangerous thing to do.
Guys, you're seeing a shot from our friends at the Daily Mail. This is when, in full tactical gear, L.A. law enforcement descends on the upstate New York home of Little House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert and husband, actor-director Timothy Busfeld. As you heard earlier, not knowing what would be inside, they batter the door open.
That from our friends at Daily Mail, which leads us to now, tonight, in the last hours, Bussfeld in a court in New Mexico answering up to charges of child sex abuse. Now, in court, the argument in court that this whole child sex abuse claim is fabricated Over revenge. Okay, joining me, an all-star panel, straight out to Jessica Finn, senior investigative reporter at the U.S.
Sun on the story from the very beginning. Jessica, thank you for being with us. What is she talking about revenge?
So the boys were basically taken off the show sometime in early 2024. And apparently the parents were very upset about this. It sounds like from the description of what the defense attorney, Amber, was saying is that the boys had basically aged out, like the role was only over the course of a couple of years.
And the boys had suddenly between COVID and other delays in filming, the boys had basically aged out. And so they decided to replace them with younger actors. And so it was, you know, they were off the show. And then all the way in November of 2024 is the first time we hear an allegation that Timothy had allegedly done something untowards towards the boys.
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Chapter 4: How did the parents of the alleged victims respond to the situation?
I'm going to play something for you. Guys, brace yourself. The defense is having a field day with this audio of the little boys when they were little boys. Listen.
You know what's right and wrong, right? Yeah. You know no one could touch your private areas? Yeah, but he doesn't touch them. He doesn't touch your private parts? Okay. And you know what's right and wrong, right? You know where people can't touch, where people can't do... Yeah, you know that, right? Does Tim ever do that? No, he's never touched me. Never touched you? Yeah.
In like, you know, your private areas, right? Never did that?
Never.
Okay.
You just heard audio, police audio, that we got from our friends at TMZ interviewing the two twin boys. We're not saying their names. We're referring to them as the V. Victory, L. Love, and S. Sally L. Love, V-L and S-L. That is the original police interview with accusers.
And it sounds like that is a forensic interviewer that establishes with the child they understand right from wrong and not to tell stories, okay? That's just part of the interview where both boys deny anything happened.
Emmy Award winner Timothy Busfield joins cast as an actor and director who tells boys to call him Uncle Tim. Inappropriate action happens on multiple occasions, and parents of the boys say Busfield masks the inappropriate touching as play. One boy says he was touched on his intimate parts over his clothing. The boys are referred to as SL and VL.
The parents say SL wakes up scared from nightmares about Busfield touching him and is diagnosed PTSD. Busfield and his wife, actress Melissa Gilbert, live a quiet, secluded life in their Catskills mountainside home until accusations pull them into public scrutiny.
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Chapter 5: What evidence has emerged from the children's interviews?
So he filed that $150,000 lawsuit against Wicca and his partners, and the judge was just beside himself and said, this is ridiculous, and tossed everything, and it went back to Timothy Busfield having to pay for the attorney's fees and everything associated with that case, with that woman, that young lady who actually was the actual victim in this case.
Okay, so that's where the figure $150,000 comes from after the lawyer sued him for defamation. To Dave Mack, how many alleged priors are there against Bussfeld?
Eight, I believe, documented, Nancy. I've seen that number. I haven't seen every one of those, just a lot of the ones that we've talked about.
And Jessica Finn, what can you tell me about Bustville passing a polygraph, a lie detector? Was it a private lie detector set up by his lawyers, or was it a police lie detector test?
So Timothy took a private lie detector test and a really unusual move while there was a warrant out for his arrest. And as he was driving 2000 miles from upstate New York to New Mexico to finally turn himself in, which again took five full days along the way, he decided he was going to take a lie detector test about this to, I guess, help exonerate him or try and keep him out of jail.
And he was, of course, held for several days behind bars until the detention hearing. that happened earlier this week. But he did take a lie detector test that supposedly tells, you know, is supposed to prove that he did not molest this little boy, allegedly.
The judge seemingly agrees with the defense. He releases Busfield, ROR, released on own recognizance. What is true? What is just in this case? You just heard this judge speaking from the bench and our friends at TMZ recorded that. Thank you, Harvey Levin. The search for justice goes on. Are the boys telling the truth? What about the other alleged victims? What happened to their cases?
And what, if anything, does that have to do with the here and now? If you know or think you know anything regarding this case, please call Albuquerque PD, 505-843-7867. 505-843-7867. We remember an American hero, Assistant Chief Johnny Patterson, Verona PD, Mississippi, killed in the line of duty after 28 years, leaving behind a distraught and grieving wife and two sons.
American hero, assistant chief, Johnny Patterson. Nancy Grace signing off. Goodbye, friend.
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