B Street Theatre investigated Sacramento incident that resurfaced before Busfield hearing
Actor Timothy Busfield, who is facing child sex abuse charges in New Mexico, was also accused of molesting a 16-year-old girl several years ago when she was auditioning for Sacramento’s B Street Theatre, a motion filed Wednesday in criminal court in Albuquerque said.
The motion filed by Bernalillo County prosecutors said Colin Swift, then a Sacramento-area therapist, called them on Tuesday after news reports detailed allegations against Busfield to say that his daughter had also been sexually abused by him. The actor lived in Sacramento for many years and is a co-founder of the city’s storied B Street Theatre.
“While auditioning for the defendant at B Street Theatre, the 16-year-old reported that defendant kissed her and put his hands down her pants and touched her privates,” the motion says, citing Swift’s statement.
At the time, Busfield begged the family not to report the incident to law enforcement and promising to participate in psychotherapy, according to the motion. Swift, who prosecutors said was a therapist himself, “thought at the time that was the best thing to do,” the motion said.
Prosecutors filed the motion as part of an argument that Busfield, who turned himself in to New Mexico authorities Tuesday, should not be released from jail to await trial. The 68-year-old actor faces two counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor child and one count of child abuse, all felonies.
He was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque at 2:30 p.m. local time on Monday, and is still being held there, booking records show. He made his first appearance in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court on Wednesday afternoon, wearing an orange jail jumpsuit and appearing via video along with other inmates from the jail facility.
Busfield, who was born in Lansing, Michigan, rose to prominence as an actor with roles in the breakout 1988 ABC drama “Thirtysomething” and the film “Field of Dreams.” He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Danny Concannon on “The West Wing.”
He co-founded B Street Theatre in 1991 with his brother, Buck Busfield, and also pitched for nine seasons on for the Sacramento Smokeys, a semi-pro baseball team.
He has vehemently denied the allegations that he inappropriately touched and groomed twin boys on the set of “The Cleaning Lady,” a television show shot in Albuquerque.
“I’m going to confront these lies,” he said in a video posted online by the celebrity news site TMZ, reportedly made at his lawyer’s office. “They’re horrible. They’re all lies. And I did not do anything to those little boys.”
Busfield, who was briefly the subject of a nationwide manhunt as police sought to arrest him, said in the video he had driven 2,000 miles to Albuquerque to confront the charges.
Multiple incidents mentioned in court filings
The criminal complaint and the motion filed Wednesday said that the actor had a history of inappropriate sexual behavior including in both Northern and Southern California.
In the documents, prosecutors cite media reports that in 1994, a 17-year-old extra on the film “Little Big League” sued Busfield in Los Angeles Superior Court in a case that was settled privately.
“The teen alleged that “Busfield assaulted her, served her alcohol, groped her and attempted sex in a trailer,” the motion said.
He countersued for defamation, but the case was dismissed, the motion said.
In March 2012, a 28-year-old woman made a police report accusing Busfield of sexual battery, the motion said, again citing media reports. She alleged he “slipped his hands under clothes, touched genitals for four minutes.” He said the incident was consensual and there was no arrest made.
B Street Theatre
The motion did not say when the alleged incident at B Street Theatre took place.
However, the theater organization appeared to acknowledge the incident, saying in an email to The Bee that the “newly reported” allegation in the motion involved an allegation made against Busfield 25 years ago, after which he had no role with the group.
“B Street retained legal counsel at the time to conduct an internal investigation and Mr. Busfield has not had any role in the organization since 2001,” the theater company said.
“He is not involved in our current operations, staff, leadership or programming,” the statement said.
In an earlier statement regarding the New Mexico allegations, the theater company distanced itself from Busfield but did not mention the prior incident. In fact, the statement made a point of saying that the allegations against Busfield in New Mexico did not involve any activity at the B Street Theatre.
“B Street Theatre is aware of recent media reports concerning Timothy Busfield and allegations of criminal conduct that have been reported in New Mexico,” the initial statement said. “These allegations did not occur at B Street Theatre, nor do they involve any activity connected with our organization, its staff, or our programs.”
In their motion, prosecutors said the alleged incident involving B Street, the history of the other incidents and the cases pending against him in New Mexico show that it would not be appropriate to release him on bail pending his trial. They also asked the court to agree that there was probable cause to arrest and charge Busfield in the case involving the child actors on “The Cleaning Lady.”
“This conduct demonstrates that the defendant poses a serious and ongoing danger not only to the named victims, but to any child placed within his proximity,” the motion said.
The prosecution’s motion will be considered at a detention hearing to be held within the next five business days, and a preliminary hearing on the case will be scheduled before Jan. 29, Judge Felicia Blea-Rivera said.
This story was originally published January 14, 2026 at 12:47 PM.
