Judge Dismisses Timothy Busfield Indictment Over Grand Jury Witness Dispute

Caption: Timothy Busfield, 2016. Credit: Allan Lundell / CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

A New Mexico judge has dismissed Timothy Busfield’s four-count indictment after finding that prosecutors mishandled grand jurors’ efforts to hear additional witnesses. The October 16 ruling ends the current indictment while leaving the state free to begin new criminal proceedings.

Busfield, the actor and director known for The West Wing and Field of Dreams, has denied the allegations. His lawyers challenged the way the February indictment was obtained, focusing on people grand jurors wanted to question before deciding whether to bring charges.

The witness requests were central

The indictment charged Busfield with four counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor. The allegations arose from his work on The Cleaning Lady, according to ABC News and Court TV.

The grand jury returned the indictment February 5, Court TV reported. At a September hearing, defense attorney Amber Fayerberg played recordings of jurors asking to hear additional witnesses, according to AP.

Busfield testified before the grand jury. His defense argued that other available witnesses should also have been heard, and that prosecutors frustrated the jurors’ requests to call them.

Court TV reported that Fayerberg said grand jurors asked three times for the witnesses. The defense also challenged an asserted requirement that the entire panel agree to return the following week before those witnesses could appear.

The distinction mattered to the motion: the defense was alleging a failure to carry out the grand jury’s own requests, rather than simply complaining that prosecutors had chosen an unfavorable set of witnesses.

Prosecutors disputed that account during the challenge. District Attorney Greer Staley argued that the defense had not followed the proper process for submitting grand jury evidence and that Busfield had tried to steer jurors toward favorable material during his testimony, AP reported.

What the judge found

Busfield’s attorneys filed their motion to quash in June, ABC reported. Judge Joseph Montano granted it after finding that prosecutors had failed to act fairly and impartially and had effectively withheld witnesses the grand jury sought.

According to Court TV’s account of the order, Montano identified an unexplained procedure and an incomplete explanation of subpoena requirements. He concluded that the proceedings violated statutes protecting the grand jury process.

The ruling addressed how the indictment was secured. It expressly leaves prosecutors able to institute another case through new proceedings, so their next decision is whether and how to pursue the allegations again.

Busfield’s attorneys welcomed the result. Fayerberg and fellow defense lawyer Chris Dodd told ABC affiliate KOAT that their client was relieved, describing an emotional reaction when he learned of the ruling. They said the allegations had damaged his career.

Nancy Laflin, communications director for the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office, told ABC that the office was “evaluating our options to determine how we will proceed.” No new prosecution decision was announced in that response.

References: Judge tosses indictment against actor Timothy Busfield | Judge tosses charges against Timothy Busfield, finding prosecutors withheld evidence from grand jury | New Mexico judge tosses charges against actor Timothy Busfield, citing prosecutor misconduct | Timothy Busfield’s Child Sex Abuse Indictment Dismissed by Judge for Prosecutorial Misconduct