Timothy Busfield’s legal team alleges “fraud and revenge” motives behind child abuse accusations.
Timothy Busfield Case
Is a criminal case built on evidence, or is it built on the character of those delivering the testimony? This is the central question currently being argued in New Mexico.
Timothy Busfield, a veteran of the industry and husband to actress Melissa Gilbert, has flatly denied the allegations of sexual abuse against two 11-year-old twins.
His legal team is now attempting to dismantle the prosecution’s foundation by painting the children’s parents as “stage parents” motivated by financial desperation and a thirst for vengeance.
The Strategy of Systematic Discrediting
In a detailed filing obtained on January 17, Busfield’s attorneys argued against his pretrial detention by shining a spotlight on the histories of the twins’ parents, Angele LaSalle and Ronald Rodis.
The defense posits that the state has no “reliable proof,” only the word of witnesses with “documented histories of fraud.”
The filing is particularly scathing regarding Ronald Rodis. It highlights his past as a disbarred attorney who was convicted of federal conspiracy and wire fraud—a scheme that reportedly defrauded over 1,500 homeowners of nearly 6 million USD.
By highlighting this, the defense intends to suggest that Rodis is a master of deception who is now using the legal system to “exploit” a celebrity for profit.
The “Revenge” Narrative
Central to Busfield’s defense is the timing of the accusations. The filing alleges that the claims only surfaced in late 2024, after the twins were recast from The Cleaning Lady.
Key Takeaways from the Defense Filing:
- Documented Motive: The defense claims that after learning her children would not return for a fourth season, Angele LaSalle explicitly told the show’s lead actor she would “get her revenge against Tim Busfield.”
- Studio Clearance: A 2025 investigation by Warner Bros. Television Studios reportedly found the allegations against Busfield to be “unfounded,” a point the defense is using to counter the police investigation.
- Manipulative Behavior: A Director of Photography on set provided testimony describing the parents as “pushy,” alleging they frequently encouraged the children to hug people on set, including Busfield, to create a specific dynamic.
The Complexity of the Accusation
While the defense focuses on the parents’ past—including LaSalle’s civil judgments for bad checks and a fraudulent Bentley sale—the prosecution’s case also includes a report from a doctor at the University of New Mexico Hospital who alerted police to potential abuse in November 2024.
The counter-intuitive risk here is the “Parental Shield.” In many cases, a jury might find the parents unlikable or even dishonest, yet still believe the children’s specific accounts of abuse.
Busfield’s team is betting that by proving a pattern of financial exploitation in the parents, they can cast enough reasonable doubt on the origin of the children’s statements to win a pretrial release.
As Busfield prepares to “confront these lies,” the case stands as a high-stakes collision between a celebrity’s professional reputation and the serious mandates of child protection.
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