女演员梅丽莎·吉尔伯特在她的丈夫、演员蒂姆西·布斯菲尔德他因涉嫌与未成年人发生刑事性接触和虐待儿童而被捕。
因在《白宫风云》中扮演丹尼·康坎农而闻名--上周向当局自首现在被关押在新墨西哥州，不得保释。
吉尔伯特恳求法官，“请，请照顾我亲爱的丈夫。因为他是我的保护者，所以我也是他的，但是我现在不能保护他，我想这是最让我心碎的。我指望你替我保护他。”
她说，“蒂姆是最强壮的道德的我所知道的任何人类的指南针。他把自己的精神奉献给了为他人服务。"
吉尔伯特还写了她丈夫和儿子迈克尔的关系，他说:“蒂姆培养和引导了迈克尔。...我永远无法表达我对上帝的感激之情，感谢他把这个美好的人带进了我们的生活。”
吉尔伯特的这封信是70封支持信中的一封，其中包括布斯菲尔德的继子迈克尔和他在《三十而立》中的搭档肯恩·奥林和彼得·霍顿。
根据ABC新闻获得的刑事指控，对布斯菲尔德的指控源于他在他的节目《清洁女工》的片场不适当地触摸一名儿童演员。根据法庭文件，孩子的父母报告称，涉嫌虐待始于2022年，当时孩子7岁，一直持续到2024年。
根据刑事起诉书，布斯菲尔德在接受调查人员采访时否认了这些指控。
布斯菲尔德的律师在上周的一份声明中说，“蒂姆·布斯菲尔德否认了刑事诉状中的指控，并坚称这些指控完全是虚假的。作为自愿的一步，他接受了独立的测谎仪测试，并通过了测试。
伯纳利洛县地方检察官萨姆·布雷格曼上周表示，布斯菲尔德的下一次听证会将于1月20日举行，以确定他是继续被拘留还是被释放候审。布雷格曼说，地方检察官将提出正式指控，布斯菲尔德将被正式传讯。
Melissa Gilbert writes emotional letter to judge in defense of husband Timothy Busfield
Actress Melissa Gilbert is speaking out in an emotional plea to a judge after her husband, actorTimothy Busfield, was arrested on charges of alleged criminal sexual contact of a minor and child abuse.
Busfield -- best known for his role as Danny Concannon on "The West Wing"--turned himself in to authorities last weekand is being held in custody in New Mexico with no bond.
Gilbert pleaded with the judge, "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. I am relying on you to protect him for me."
She said, "Tim has the strongestmoralcompass of any human I have ever known. He has dedicated his spiritual self to always being of service to others."
Gilbert also wrote about her husband's relationship with her son Michael, saying, "Tim nurtured and guided Michael. ... I will never be able to express the depth of gratitude I have to God for bringing this wonderful human into our lives."
Gilbert's letter is among 70 letters of support, including from Busfield's stepson Michael and his former "Thirtysomething" co-stars Ken Olin and Peter Horton.
The charges against Busfield stem from accusations that he inappropriately touched a child actor on the set of his show "The Cleaning Lady," according to a criminal complaint obtained by ABC News. According to court documents, the child's parents reported that the alleged abuse began in 2022, when the child was 7 years old, and lasted until 2024.
Busfield denied the allegations when interviewed by investigators, according to the criminal complaint.
Busfield's attorney said in a statement last week, "Tim Busfield denies the allegations in the criminal complaint and maintains they are completely false. As a voluntary step, he submitted to an independent polygraph examination regarding those allegations and passed."
Busfield's next hearing is on Jan. 20 to determine whether he will remain in custody or be released pending trial, Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman said last week. The DA will then bring formal charges and Busfield will be arraigned on the formal charges, Bregman said.
