Latest / Crime Stories with Nancy Grace / Timothy Busfield Seeks Pre‑Trial Release, Submits Polygraph as Melissa Gilbert Appeals to Judge | Crime Alert 6AM 01.18.26

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Timothy Busfield Seeks Pre‑Trial Release, Submits Polygraph as Melissa Gilbert Appeals to Judge | Crime Alert 6AM 01.18.26 · Crime Stories with Nancy Grace

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  Speaker 1: Crime alert imancy grace breaking crime is now allegations mount
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  Speaker 1: against Emmy Award winner Timothy Busfield, the spouse of Little
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  Speaker 1: House on the Prairie star Melissa Gilbert. His lawyer trying
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  Speaker 1: to deflect, says the West Wing actor passed a voluntary
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  Speaker 1: independent polygraph test, denying all claims crime stories.
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  Speaker 2: Nicole Parton explains, Nancy Busfield was ordered held without bond
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  Speaker 2: at his first court appearance on Wednesday, a day after
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  Speaker 2: he turned himself in to face charges stemming from allegations
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  Speaker 2: that he inappropriately touched a minor on the set of
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  Speaker 2: a TV series he was directing in New Mexico. This
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  Speaker 2: as new details emerge about a separate misconduct allegation against him.
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  Speaker 2: In the seven page filing, New Mexico prosecutors said law
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  Speaker 2: enforcement officers received a report Thursday from the alleged victim's father,
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  Speaker 2: who said Busfield kissed his sixteen year old daughter and
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  Speaker 2: inappropriately touched her quote several years ago. But Melissa Gilbert
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  Speaker 2: is standing resolutely by her husband, Timothy Buzzfield, as he
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  Speaker 2: confronts these serious sexual abuse allegations. The sixty one year
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  Speaker 2: old actress, known for her role in Little House on
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  Speaker 2: the Prairie has been named as a potential witness for
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  Speaker 2: Busfield's defense, and a court document filed on Friday. The
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  Speaker 2: filing contains Busfield's response to the stage request for pretrial attention,
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  Speaker 2: listing thirteen people, including Melissa Gilbert, his wife, who may
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  Speaker 2: testify on his behalf. In addition to her potential witness role,
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  Speaker 2: Gilbert has written a heartfelt letter to the judge expressing
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  Speaker 2: her unwavering support for her husband. This document also includes
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  Speaker 2: seventy five letters from family and colleagues advocating for Busfield.
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  Speaker 2: In her letter, Gilbert described her bond with her husband,
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  Speaker 2: recalling their initial meeting in the nineteen eighties and their
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  Speaker 2: sol subsequent reconnection years later. She mentioned that they fell
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  Speaker 2: in love in twenty twelve, stating Tim Bussfield is my love,
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  Speaker 2: my rock, my partner in business and life. His joy, humor,
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  Speaker 2: and quick wit light up my days. He is the
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  Speaker 2: heartbeat of our vibrant and loving extended family. She emphasized
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  Speaker 2: Busfield's strong moral character, saying he possesses the most solid
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  Speaker 2: moral compass I've ever encountered. His life is dedicated to
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  Speaker 2: serving others, and he approaches each day with kindness and compassion.
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  Speaker 2: Gilbert also praised her husband's mentorship of her youngest son, Michael,
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  Speaker 2: describing his influence as profound. She credited his military experiences
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  Speaker 2: for instilling values of honor, integrity, and compassion in him.
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  Speaker 2: In closing her letter, Gilbert reflected on the emotional strain
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  Speaker 2: of addressing the court, saying quote, as he is my protector,
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  Speaker 2: I am his but I cannot protect him now, and
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  Speaker 2: I think that, more than anything else, is what is
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  Speaker 2: truly heartbreaking. I'm relying on you to protect him for me.
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  Speaker 2: An arrest one for the acclaimed director and Emmy winning actor,
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  Speaker 2: was issued on January nine. The investigation into the allegations
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  Speaker 2: against Busfield began on November one, twenty twenty four, following
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  Speaker 2: a report from a physician at the University of New
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  Speaker 2: Mexico Hospital regarding suspected sexual abuse of twin boys who
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  Speaker 2: were child actors and worked on set with Busfield.
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  Speaker 1: Nicole thank you. A preliminary hearing set January twenty nine.
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  Speaker 1: More Crimate justice news after this.
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  Speaker 2: And to Tennessee. In a shocking incident, a son fatally
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  Speaker 2: attacked his mother while she was watching television, killed her cat,
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  Speaker 2: and then casually settled down with a drink to watch
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  Speaker 2: the rest of the television program she was watching before
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  Speaker 2: he headed off to bed. It was September eighth, twenty
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  Speaker 2: twenty three deputies from the Blunt County Sheriff's Office were
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  Speaker 2: alerted to a possible dead body at a resident. Upon arrival,
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  Speaker 2: first responders found sixty three year old Kimberly Hayes dead
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  Speaker 2: in her home, suffering from multiple stab wounds that indicated
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  Speaker 2: foul play. Additionally, investigators found a cat inside the residence
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  Speaker 2: that also died after being stabbed. Authorities quickly identified Kimberly's son,
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  Speaker 2: Zachary Justin Hayes, twenty five, as the main suspect in
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  Speaker 2: her murder. He was arrested and charged with multiple homicide
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  Speaker 2: related charges, and a recorded pre booking interview was shown
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  Speaker 2: in court on January thirty, twenty four to explain his
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  Speaker 2: side of the story. He said, in part, I was
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  Speaker 2: not looking forward to it, planning it. I just saw
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  Speaker 2: her watching television and decided it's a good night to
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  Speaker 2: kill my mother. Hayes told police that he did not
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  Speaker 2: have much reason to stab his mother to death, which
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  Speaker 2: he did while she was watching television in her living room.
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  Speaker 2: Hayes said that after killing his mother, he poured himself
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  Speaker 2: a drink and finished watching the television show she had on,
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  Speaker 2: and when went to bed. Kimberly's body was found by
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  Speaker 2: a worried coworker who arrived at her home to find
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  Speaker 2: the grizzly scene after she didn't show up for work.
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  Speaker 2: Now at age twenty seven, Hayes has pleaded guilty to
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  Speaker 2: murder in the second degree, abuse of a corpse, aggravated
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  Speaker 2: cruelty to animals, and intentional killing of an animal. On
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  Speaker 2: January sixteen, he was sentenced to thirty seven years in prison.
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: James Selait makes his dream of traveling across the country
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  Speaker 1: on bicycle a reality his latest cross country ride from Saginaw, Michigan,
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  Speaker 1: to Reading, Pennsylvania. He spends the winter exploring Pennsylvania and
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  Speaker 1: sets out for Surf City, North Carolina, April one. April eight,
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  Speaker 1: he sends a text to family saying he accidentally left
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  Speaker 1: his backpack on the side of the road while changing
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  Speaker 1: a tire. When he went back for it, it was gone.
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  Speaker 1: His money, ID and maps were inside. He never makes
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  Speaker 1: it to Serf City. His phone stops pinging after the
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  Speaker 1: last text from Clarksville, Maryland, James Solac fifty nine five eleven,
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  Speaker 1: one hundred and sixty five pounds, gray hair, blue eyes,
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  Speaker 1: usually with mustache and goateee. He has the name Helen
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  Speaker 1: tattooed on his upper left arm. If you have info
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  Speaker 1: on James Solac, please call Central Burkes, Pennsylvania PD six'
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  Speaker 1: one zero seven seventy nine eleven hundred. For the latest
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  Speaker 1: crime Instice news, go to crime online dot com and
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  Speaker 1: please join us for our daily podcast, Crime Stories, where
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  Speaker 1: we do our best to find missing people, especially children,
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  Speaker 1: and solve unsolved homicides. With this crime art, I'm Nancy Grace.