'LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE' STAR SOBS IN COURT OVER SEX CHARGES

"Little House on the Prairie" alum, Melissa Gilbert, sobs in court during hubby Timothy Busfield's pretrial detention hearing in Bernalillo County, New Mexico.

Emmy Award winner Timothy Busfield is now released from the New Mexico jail, pending trial for child sex abuse charges. Busfield is accused of inappropriately touching two 11-year-old twin boys while directing episodes of the hit TV show, "The Cleaning Lady."

When Busfield joins the cast as an actor and director, he tells the boys to call him "Uncle Tim." The alleged inappropriate action happens on multiple occasions, and parents of the boys say Busfield masks the inappropriate touching as "play."

One of the boys, "SL," states that he was touched on his intimate parts over his clothing. The parents say SL wakes up scared from nightmares and is diagnosed with Post-Traumatic-Stress Disorder (PTSD), due to about Busfield touching him.

Allegations surface that one of the boys withdrew from the set and didn't want to go as much as before. The child actors accused Timothy Busfield of touching them inappropriately while working on the TV show, "The Cleaning Lady," told a totally different story when they first talked to investigators.

Asked directly and specifically if they knew about private areas on their body that no one can touch, and both boys say "yes." When asked if Timothy Busfield ever touches their "privates," both boys answer "no."

Lawyers for Busfield say he passed an independent polygraph and is innocent of all charges.

Joining Nancy Grace:

• Chris Melcher - Celebrity Lawyer and Partner at Walzer Melcher & Yoda with deep experience in complex family law litigation, website: WalzerMelcher.com
• Dr. Bethany Marshall - Psychoanalyst, Author: "Deal Breaker: When to work on a relationship and when to walk away," and featured in hit show: "Paris in Love" on Peacock; Instagram & TikTok: drbethanymarshall, Twitter: @DrBethanyLive
• Jessica Finn - Senior Investigative Reporter at The U.S. Sun; jessicafinnnyc (X/ IG) @jessicafinn.bsky.social (Bluesky)
• Dave Mack - Investigative Reporter, 'Crime Stories'

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.