Timothy Busfield Denies 1991 Sexual Assault Allegations From Former Co-Star

Timothy Busfield is currently out on bond pending trial due to multiple charges of alleged child sexual abuse of two minors on the set of the Fox series, "The Cleaning Lady," where he acted as director. However, an on-set sexual assault from 35 years ago has put the actor on the defensive once again.

A former co-star recently alleged that back in 1991, while working together on a movie, Busfield forced himself on her via unwanted sexual advances, claims which he has vehemently denied.

According to TMZ, Timothy Busfield is denying recent claims by actress Claudia Christian that while filming the 1991 movie "Strays," the "Thirtysomething" star sexually assaulted her inside his trailer as they rehearsed their lines.

Busfield's attorney, Larry Stein, issued a statement to the news outlet regarding the explosive claims.

"The current case, which has destroyed his reputation and career, is about an allegation regarding prepubescent boys," Stein said, adding, "There is absolutely no connection between 35-year-old allegations regarding an adult woman and prepubescent boys."

In an interview with The Mirror US, Claudia Christian said that back in 1991, during the filming of the television movie "Strays," Timothy Busfield allegedly "grabbed her, threw her against a wall, and started kissing her while they were rehearsing lines in his trailer," per the outlet.

Additionally, in a police interview obtained by the outlet, Christian went into further detail regarding the alleged assault. "He had an erection, and he shoved his tongue in my mouth, and I pushed him off, and I ran out of the trailer," she said during the interview.

Christian told the outlet that the current charges against him and the pending trial gave her the courage to come forward 35 years later.

"I was a young woman when he assaulted me and I was able to move forward with little trauma from the incident, but a child does not have the capacity to understand nor process this sort of behavior from an adult and that is why he needs to be stopped, now," she said.

"That sickens me, that he could destroy a child's life and not only get away with it, but deny it and then turn the blame on them," she continued.

While she told the outlet that she is not expecting "justice" for herself, she hopes her story will help the alleged victims in his current case.

"I am simply trying to help the prosecution establish a pattern and precedence. That was my one and only reason for reaching out to the detective in charge of the case," Christian said.

Per PEOPLE, on February 6, Busfield was indicted by the Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a child, which are all classified as third-degree felonies.

"As with all criminal proceedings, Mr. Busfield is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law," Bregman said via statement following the indictment announcement. "This case will proceed through the judicial process and is expected to move forward to trial."

"The Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office remains committed to doing everything possible to protect children and ensure justice for victims across New Mexico," the statement said, according to the outlet.

Speaking exclusively with Deadline following the indictment, Busfield's attorney, Larry Stein, said that although the "indictment was not unexpected," he and his client intend to vigorously "fight" the charges against "The West Wing" star.

"As the saying goes, a grand jury will indict a ham sandwich," Stein began. "What is deeply concerning is that the District Attorney is choosing to proceed on a case that is fundamentally unsound and cannot be proven at trial."

"The detention hearing exposed fatal weaknesses in the State's evidence — gaps that no amount of charging decisions can cure," he continued. "This prosecution appears driven by something other than the facts or the law. Mr. Busfield will fight these charges at every stage and looks forward to testing the State's case in open court — where evidence matters — not behind closed doors."

On January 20, Judge David A. Murray granted Busfield his release from jail pending trial after hearing statements from both the defense and the prosecution.

The conditions of his release included the following: Being present for all upcoming court hearings, prohibited from having any "unsupervised contact with any minor children in this case," with instructions to "not to have any contact with the alleged victims or their families, and you're also not to discuss the case with any witnesses."

Judge Murray also addressed the prosecution's claims of past sexual assault allegations against Busfield that never resulted in any charges against him.

"There are no similar allegations involving children in his past. There's no evidence of non-compliance with prior court orders. Rather, this defendant self-surrendered and submitted himself to this Court's jurisdiction, demonstrating compliance with the court order for his arrest," the judge said.

In an audio recording obtained by TMZ, the two male minor victims were interviewed by police back in November 2024 and asked directly if they were inappropriately touched by Busfield.

In the audio, a police officer can be heard asking the boys a series of questions, including: "So, you know what is right and wrong, right? You know no one can touch your private areas?"

One of the boys replied to those questions, telling the officer, "Yeah, but he doesn't touch those parts." The other young boy added his own response, saying, "No, he's never touched me... never."

These statements in the audio will prove to be crucial to the defense's case, as they believe they contradict more recent claims against the actor.