Melissa Gilbert says she knew about Timothy Busfield’s past sexual abuse allegations before they married her.

need to know

• Melissa Gilbert is speaking out amid her husband Timothy Busfield’s legal issues

• Busfield was indicted by a grand jury in February on four counts of criminal sexual intercourse with a minor (a child under the age of 13), all third-degree felonies.

• Gilbert spoke during an interview Good morning AmericaIn which she also addressed her husband’s past allegations of sexual abuse from the 90s and 2012.

Melissa Gilbert is speaking out about husband Timothy Busfield’s past allegations of sexual abuse.

The actress sat down for an interview Good morning AmericaGeorge Stephanopoulos which aired on Monday, April 6. Stephanopoulos asked about two previous allegations of sexual misconduct against Busfield from 1994 and 2012. The Albuquerque Police Department officer who issued the warrant against Busfield referred to “two separate” prior incidents and another incident of sexual assault against Busfield, 90, in reference to his latest allegations. 2012.

“I need to make a lot of things clear. These allegations have been in the ether for a very long time,” Gilbert, 61, said of her husband, whom she married in April 2013.

“When Tim and I were together, the Internet existed. I wasn’t blind in my relationship. I was neither naive nor involved,” she said. “I talked to him about it. I asked him questions about it. I heard his side of the story — that nobody’s heard — that’s true. And when the time is right, and it’s not now, Tim will tell the truth about all these past allegations if necessary.”

Busfield’s previous charges include involving a 17-year-old extra Little Big League who “filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming that Busfield assaulted her, gave her alcohol, touched her, attempted sex in the trailer.” According to the warrant, Busfield denied the allegations and counterclaimed for extortion. That dispute was settled, and he later “tossed a defamation bid against his attorneys, leaving him with approximately $150,000 in costs. No charges have been filed.” (After Busfield appealed the costs award, the parties settled the case.)

The second past charge dates back to March 18, 2012, when a 28-year-old woman accused Busfield of battery at an LA movie theater, accusing him of “slipping his hand under her clothing, touching her private parts for four minutes,” according to an arrest warrant. No charges were filed, prosecutors “passed due to thin evidence” and Busfield “called it consensual,” according to the warrant.

Busfield surrendered to police on Jan. 13 after the Albuquerque Police Department issued arrest warrants on Jan. 9 for allegedly having illicit sex with two 11-year-old boys he met on Fox’s set. cleaning lady He was charged with one count of criminal sexual contact of a minor and one count of child abuse for allegedly engaging in unlawful sexual conduct with twin 11-year-old boys.

The actor, 68, was released from custody on Jan. 20 after a pretrial detention hearing in San Bernalillo, NM, and on Feb. 6, was indicted by a Bernalillo County grand jury on four counts of criminal sexual contact with a minor (child under 13). In a plea filed Feb. 10 in New Mexico’s Second Judicial District Court, Busfield pleaded not guilty to all third-degree felonies and the incidents that occurred in October 2022 and September 2023, court documents show.

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Gilbert’s rep told PEOPLE that Little House on the Prairie The alum and Busfield attorney Larry Stein wanted to speak with Stephanopoulos because he said it was “time to sit down and clarify the facts of the case, which seem to have been lost in the distraction, selective information and clickbait.”

During the interview, Gilbert said it has been “hell” since her husband was arrested. “This has been the most traumatic experience of our lives.”

“Our life as we knew it is over,” she said. “We’re grieving what we had – all our plans, all our dreams, all our ideas, all our projects. For Tim, it’s over. He’s done away with. Even if he’s acquitted, he’ll always be that man.”

Gilbert said her husband of 13 years was “the last person in the world who would hurt a child”.

“No one knows him better than I do. I know literally everything about him. Our marriage has had many ups and downs. We’ve been through struggles, we’ve had our own problems and we’ve worked through everything,” she said. “He is nothing if not completely honest with me. I trust him with my children’s lives, my grandchildren’s lives, my nieces and nephews. He is a respectful, caring, generous human being.”

Busfield also spoke before surrendering to police on Jan. 13 in a video obtained by TMZ. “I didn’t do anything,” he said into the camera. “They’re all lies and I didn’t do anything to those little guys and I’m going to fight this. I’m going to fight this big team, and I’m going to be innocent, I know I am, because it’s all so wrong and all lies.”

In a January 26 post shared through her company, Modern Prairie, Gilbert spoke of the “extraordinarily difficult” situation she and her family are in.

“This season has reminded me so vividly, how important it is to slow down, prioritize what really matters and allow moments of rest. Taking a step back from the noise, the news and our daily responsibilities from time to time gives us space to recharge, reflect and find our center again,” she wrote.

If you suspect child abuse, call the ChildHelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or visit www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in over 170 languages.

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