1 hour ago
3
Melissa Gilbert returned to social media four months after her husband, Timothy Busfield, was accused of child sex abuse.
The “Little House on the Prairie” actress shared a post on her Instagram account on Tuesday announcing that she’s hosting an Instagram Live on her company Modern Prairie’s page on Friday.
Her post, which promoted her business’s Get in the Picture campaign, included a photo of two crochet dolls of Gilbert and co-founder Nicole Haase and a regular photo of the pair.
Her caption read, “That’s right. I’m back. See you Friday! xo, MGB Repost from @officialmodernprairie.”
Gilbert deleted her personal Instagram account in January, though Modern Prairie’s page has remained active.
Busfield, 68, was arrested in January in New Mexico on charges of child abuse and criminal sexual contact of a minor over allegedly inappropriately touching two actors, 7-year-old twin boys, on Fox’s “Cleaning Lady” series in 2022.
The “West Wing” alum, who has denied the allegations, was officially charged on Feb. 6 with four counts of criminal sexual contact of a child under the age of 13.
He pleaded not guilty on Feb. 21 and after waiving his arraignment and appearances in court for all pretrial proceedings.
Busfield’s trial is set to begin in May 2027.
Gilbert, who is standing by her embattled husband, revealed she knew about his past sexual assault allegations before they got married in 2013.
“I’m neither naive nor am I complicit,” she told George Stephanopoulos last month during a “Good Morning America” interview. “I talked to him about it. I asked him questions about it.”
“I heard his side of the story — which nobody has ever heard — which is the truth,” Gilbert continued. “And when the time is right, and that is not now, Tim will tell the truth of all of these past allegations when he needs to.”
She also insisted that Busfield is “the last person in the world who would hurt a child,” but noted that because of the allegations, “our life as we knew it is done.”
“We are grieving what we had — all of our plans, all of our dreams, all of our ideas, all of our projects. For Tim, it’s done,” she explained. “He’s canceled. Even if he’s exonerated, he will always be that guy.”
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-330-0226.
English (US)