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ACTOR and director Timothy Busfield is facing allegations of child sexual abuse.

An arrest warrant has been issued for the Emmy-winning star, best known for his roles in “Field of Dreams” and the TV shows “The West Wing” and “Thirtysomething”.

A police probe into the film icon was launched in November 2024 when cops attended the University of New Mexico Hospital after a doctor made a report.

An officer reportedly spoke with two parents who said their children were actors on the FOX TV show “The Cleaning Lady” – where Busfield, 68, worked as a director.

The producer is alleged to have told the siblings to call him “Uncle Tim”, and was accused of tickling their stomach and legs, according to a warrant filed by Albuquerque police on January 4.

Hospital employees told police that it appeared the kids had been groomed, court documents say.

One of the minors claimed the alleged abuse started when he was seven years old.

Busfield allegedly touched the child five or six times on another occasion.

The director is said to have grown “closer to the boys” over the series shooting, the children’s’ parents say in the arrest warrant.

One of the minors told a therapist in 2025 that Busfield touched his “genitalia” and “bottom” while in a bedroom on the set of the TV show, according to an affidavit obtained by KTLA.

The document says that Busfield told an officer that he had engaged in “playful” contact with the children on set, but denied any wrongdoing. 

Busfield, also well-known for his role in “Revenge of the Nerds”, now faces two counts of sexual contact with a minor and child abuse. 

It is currently unclear whether or not the Hollywood star has been booked yet.

According to his arrest warrant, Busfield has previously faced sexual assault allegations dating back to 1994.

The Sun reached out to Busfield’s team for comment.

Busfield has over 700 credits as an actor, producer and director in TV and film.

He won an Emmy Award for his role as Elliot Weston on the hit series “Thirtysomething” in 1991.

The film industry giant is best-known for his role as Danny Concannon in several seasons of “The West Wing”.

But he has also appeared in several films including “Stripes,” “Sneakers” and “Quiz Show”.

Busfield married Melissa Gilbert in 2013, and the pair do not share any children.

Breaking news… More to follow…

In some ways, it was just another campaign coffee: Los Angeles mayoral candidate Austin Beutner in a roomful of voters talking about his career and life accomplishments.

But this was no ordinary meet-and-greet. Beutner was standing inside a partially rebuilt house — with no doors, no windows and no drywall — in an area leveled by the Palisades fire. In the living room, about a dozen people spoke about what they had been through, from the frantic evacuation to the sight of smoldering ruins to the battle to get rebuilding permits.

Allison Holdorff Polhill, who owns the home, introduced Beutner — a former L.A. school superintendent — as the civic leader she would turn to first in a crisis.

“We were in the worst disaster that L.A. has ever experienced,” she told the group. “And we needed a leader that has experience with disasters and emergencies.”

The catastrophic Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead, has redefined the L.A. mayor’s race, expanding the field of candidates and creating a political minefield for Karen Bass as she seeks a second four-year term.

When the fire broke out on Jan. 7, 2025, Bass drew criticism for being in Ghana on a diplomatic mission. Once she returned, she was at odds with her fire chief and unsteady in her public appearances.

More recently, she has faced scrutiny over her handling of the recovery, as well as fire officials’ watering down of an after-action report that was supposed to identify mistakes in the firefighting effort.

The Times found that LAFD officials failed to fully pre-deploy engines to the Palisades amid forecasts of dangerously high winds and that a battalion chief ordered firefighters to leave the scene of a Jan. 1 blaze, even though it wasn’t fully extinguished. That fire rekindled a week later to become the Palisades fire.

Fernando Guerra, a political science professor at Loyola Marymount University, said he expects the disaster will be the No. 1 issue in the June 2 mayoral primary, resonating with voters well beyond Pacific Palisades.

To wage a competitive campaign, each of Bass’ challengers will need to make the fire and its aftermath “a reflection of what’s wrong with city government,” he said.

“It really does reflect on the readiness of the city, the responsiveness of the city, how is government working at the most basic level,” said Guerra, who also runs the Center for the Study of Los Angeles.

So far, Bass’ major challengers are embracing that strategy.

Beutner, who ran the L.A. Unified School District early in the pandemic, has accused Bass of failing to take responsibility for the city’s failures before and after the fire. On Monday, appearing with fire victims in Pacific Palisades, he called on the mayor to form a citizens commission to examine what went wrong.

Rae Huang, a community organizer who is challenging the mayor from the left, has expressed disappointment in what she called Bass’ “finger-pointing” — a reference to the mayor’s criticism, and ouster, of Fire Chief Kristin Crowley last year.

Then there’s reality TV star Spencer Pratt, an outspoken Bass critic, who launched a campaign rooted in his fury over the city’s handling of the fire — and the loss of his family’s home in the flames.

“I’ve waited a whole year for someone to step up and challenge Karen Bass, but I saw no fighters,” Pratt said in a social media post Wednesday. “Guess I’m gonna have to do this myself.”

Still unclear is whether two formidable public figures will jump in — L.A. County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and real estate developer Rick Caruso, who lost to Bass in 2022. On Wednesday, Caruso said he will decide in the next couple of weeks whether he will run for mayor or governor.

Asked whether he might stay out of both races, Caruso responded: “I think that option is pretty much off the table now.”

As the city marked the one-year anniversary of the fires this week, Bass mostly kept a low profile, addressing the Pacific Palisades Democratic Club over the weekend and joining a private vigil at the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine.

While Pratt and hundreds of demonstrators were staging a “They Let Us Burn” rally in the Palisades, Bass stood solemnly outside City Hall as police officers lowered flags to half-staff. Bass spoke about grief and loss, but also the fact that more than 400 homes are being rebuilt.

“You see signs of hope everywhere,” she told the crowd.

Bass’ political team has taken a tougher approach, accusing her most outspoken critics — including Pratt, who is releasing a book later this month — of exploiting the disaster for political or even financial gain.

“For the first time ever we saw a major wildfire politicized by MAGA leaders and monetized by social influencers making tens of thousands of dollars per month and hawking books on the backs of a devastated community,” Bass campaign strategist Doug Herman said in a statement.

For much of the past year, Bass has faced criticism over the Fire Department’s deployment decisions and its failure to put out the Jan. 1 fire. She also has taken hits over the recovery, with residents saying she has not delivered on promises to waive permit fees for rebuilding homes lost in the fire.

Now, the focus has turned to a new and unsettling question: Did the city undermine its own effort to assess the Fire Department’s mistakes?

The Times reported last month that LAFD officials made changes to the after-action report that were so significant that its author, Battalion Chief Kenneth Cook, declined to endorse it.

“The fact that [Cook] is not willing to sponsor, or support, or endorse the report says a hell of a lot about the fact that there is no trust and clear leadership,” Huang said.

Bass told The Times on Wednesday that she did not work with the Fire Department on changes to the report, nor did the agency consult her about any changes.

Horvath, who is running for a second four-year term as county supervisor, has also ripped the city over the report, saying wildfire victims feel “gaslit” — and deserve answers.

The supervisor, whose sprawling district includes the Palisades burn area, said she has been hearing from people asking her to run for mayor. She said she would prefer to continue in county office. But she voiced concern about the city’s future — not just its handling of the wildfire, but also the budget, the homelessness crisis and the delivery of basic services.

“I think people are hungry for a different kind of leadership,” she told The Times.

Pacific Palisades has not been a political stronghold for Bass. Although she won her 2022 race against Caruso by a 10-point margin, she trailed him by double digits in the Palisades.

Like many people across the region, the major mayoral candidates were directly impacted by the January fires or have family who lost homes — or both.

Beutner’s home was severely damaged in the Palisades fire, forcing him to live elsewhere for the past year. His mother-in-law’s home, also in the Palisades, was completely destroyed.

Bass has spoken repeatedly about her brother, whose Malibu home was destroyed in the Palisades fire. Huang’s 53-year-old cousin lost her Altadena home in the Eaton fire. Pratt, who is suing the city over the Palisades fire, said on social media that the flames consumed not just his home but also one owned by his parents.

Caruso, still a candidate-in-waiting, managed to save Palisades Village, the shopping center he opened in 2018, in part by securing his own private firefighting crew. But the inferno nevertheless destroyed the homes of his son and daughter, who are 26 and 29.

On the night the fire broke out, Caruso voiced his fury on live television about empty fire hydrants and the overall lack of water to douse the flames. Since then, he has offered a steady stream of criticism about the rebuilding process, including the mayor’s decision not to select a replacement for Steve Soboroff, who served 90 days as her recovery czar.

Caruso has spoken favorably in recent weeks about a few aspects of the recovery, including the reopening of classrooms and the quick removal of fire debris. He credited L.A. Unified and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, respectively, for those accomplishments — not the city.

“Frankly, the bright spots are under the leadership of other people,” he told The Times.

Beutner has been equally blunt. At last month’s campaign coffee, he said the city needs to convene a citizen panel similar to the Christopher Commission, which was formed weeks after the 1991 police beating of Rodney King. The panel assessed the LAPD’s handling of discipline, misconduct complaints, excessive force by officers and other issues.

“If you have a tragedy, you have public hearings, you have leaders who are empaneled with the money they need to ask tough questions of everybody — the mayor, her staff, the acting mayor, police, fire” and the Department of Water and Power, Beutner told the group. “What did you do, and what would you have done differently?”

Clara Karger, a spokesperson for Bass, said the city is already participating in a state investigation, which is being overseen by the Fire Safety Research Institute, into the Palisades and Eaton fires.

On top of that, she said, the fire department is commissioning an independent investigation into its response to the Jan. 1 fire that reignited into the Palisades fire. That blaze, known as the Lachman fire, was mentioned only briefly in the department’s after-action report.

“Mayor Bass wants all the information to ensure accountability and to continue implementing needed reforms, many of which are already underway from LAFD,” Karger said.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 members, NASA pilot Mike Fincke, NASA commander Zena Cardman, mission specialist Oleg Platonov of Roscosmos and mission specialist Kimiya Yui from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency walk out of the operations center before boarding a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in July. File Photo by Pat Benic/UPI | License Photo

Jan. 8 (UPI) — NASA said Thursday that four astronauts aboard the International Space Station will return to Earth a month earlier than scheduled after one of them suffered a “serious medical condition.”

Neither the astronaut nor the medical issue were made public, with NASA officials saying they were withholding the information due to medical privacy.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman told reporters in a press conference that they expect to announce an anticipated undock and re-entry timeline in the next 42 hours.

It will be the first medical early return of an astronaut in the 25-year history of the orbiting laboratory.

“After discussions with chief health and medical officer Dr. J.D. Polk and leadership across the agency, I’ve come to the decision that it’s in the best interest of our astronauts to return Crew-11 ahead of their planned departure,” Isaacman said.

NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Kimiya Yui and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov make up Crew-11, which launched on Aug. 1 for the ISS aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.

Polk said the affected astronaut was “absolutely stable” but had suffered a medical incident “sufficient enough” that they would be best served by a complete evaluation on Earth.

“Again, because the astronaut is absolutely stable, this is not an emergent evacuation,” he said. “We’re not immediately disembarking and getting the astronaut down, but it leaves that lingering risk and lingering question as to what that diagnosis is, and that means there’s some lingering risk for that astronaut aboard.”

Though it is ISS’ first medical evacuation, Polk said it was being carried out as NASA was “erring on the side of caution for the crew member and in their best interest and their best medical welfare.”

The announcement came hours after NASA postponed Thursday’s spacewalk from the ISS due to an astronaut medical issue involving a single crew member.

“Safely conducting our missions is our highest priority, and we are actively evaluating all options, including the possibility of an earlier end to Crew-11’s mission,” NASA said in a statement. “These are the situations NASA and our partners train for and prepare to execute safely.”

Crew-11 was originally scheduled to complete its mission and return to Earth in late February, after being relieved by Crew-12.

Isaacman said they are now looking at earlier launch opportunities for Crew-12 to reach the ISS.

Until then, NASA astronaut Christopher Williams, who launched to the station late November, will maintain a U.S. presence on the orbital laboratory.

Along with Williams, the ISS is inhabited by cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikayev, who arrived via Russian Soyuz on Nov. 27.

Not to offend Larry David by saying it as late as Jan. 7, but: Happy New Year!

The turning of the calendar also signals that Phase I of awards season is coming to a close. With the Golden Globes and a big weekend of parties on the horizon, I’m proud to share our last issue — and my last letter from the editor — until after the Oscar nominations.

I’ll be back in February to unveil our three issues in Phase II. And be sure to keep an eye out Friday for Glenn Whipp’s newsletter, which will have more on our Jan. 8 cover subject, George Clooney.

Digital cover story: ‘Bugonia’

Fans of Yorgos Lanthimos’ misanthropic comedies will forgive the Michael Haneke pun in my coverline for Michael Ordoña’s story on “Bugonia,” starring Emma Stone as a healthcare CEO and Jesse Plemons as the conspiracy theorist who believes she’s an alien invader. And not simply because Haneke’s own brand of bleak absurdism seems to have rubbed off on Lanthimos. Funny games — well, ‘silly games’ — are at the core of Lanthimos’ distinct creative process.

“It makes it light,” the filmmaker explained. “You don’t take yourself too seriously. You don’t take the material seriously. You’re gargling and doing lines, whatever. It’s a way of the actors getting the dialogue in them in an unconscious way, not fixed with a kind of intellectual baggage, so it’s freer and it has more possibilities. And they feel comfortable with each other.”

Small roles, big performances

Envelope copy chief Blake Hennon sent up a cheer when Lisa Rosen’s recurring spotlight on the brilliant-but-unheralded turns that we love in movies came across his desk, and rightly so. In a flash, a film can make an indelible impression, and it’s often thanks to those who fall outside the usual pundit predictions.

This year’s participants include real-life siblings Jacobi and Noah Jupe (“Hamnet”), Paul Thomas Anderson stalwart April Grace (“One Battle After Another”) and one-scene wonder Hadley Robinson (“The History of Sound”).

The shot of the season

Thanks to contributor Daron James, the back page of every Envelope features an unforgettable frame from a film or TV series, accompanied by an explanation from the artists behind it. And while all are striking, I’m glad to say we’re ending Phase I on my favorite.

Perhaps it’s that “Breathless” was one of the first movies that made me fall in love with movies. Perhaps it’s Richard Linklater’s courageous decision to have his protagonist wear dark sunglasses throughout the movie. Perhaps it’s the charm of actors Guillaume Marbeck and Zoey Deutch. It’s probably all of the above. But whatever the reason, the final shot of “Nouvelle Vague” is, for my money, the best single shot I saw in 2025.

More stories from our Jan. 8 issue

Jan. 6 (UPI) — The man accused of vandalizing Vice President JD Vance’s home in Cincinnati has a history of mental health issues, his defense attorney said in court Tuesday.

William DeFoor, 26, was arrested and is accused of vandalizing the Vance home at 12:15 a.m. EST on Monday while the vice president and second lady Usha Vance were in Washington, D.C.

DeFoor’s attorney, Paul Laufman, made the mental health claim during his client’s arraignment hearing in Hamilton County Municipal Court on Tuesday.

Laufman said the vandalism was not politically motivated, and Judge Janaya Trotter Bratton ordered DeFoor to post an $11,000 bond to be released from custody.

DeFoor writes “peaceful” prose in his poems, and his using a hammer to damage a vehicle driven by a federal agent watching Vance’s home and then several windows on the home were not intended as a political statement, Laufman told the court.

“I just don’t think there’s anything political going on,” Laufman said.

DeFoor is accused of felony damage, criminal trespass, criminal damage and obstructing official business.

He has a history of mental health-related cases heard by the Hamilton County Mental Health Court and has been arrested multiple times for vandalism.

When DeFoor arrived outside of Vance’s home, he tried to break the windows of a Secret Service vehicle that was blocking the driveway, according to a criminal complaint filed by FBI Assistant Special Agent Gavin Hartsell.

A Secret Service agent and Cincinnati police announced their presence and ordered DeFoor to “stop and drop the weapon” he was holding, Hartsell wrote.

“DeFoor ignored all commands and began to use a hammer to break glass windows,” located on the front of Vance’s home, he said.

Hartsell described the windows as “large, historic windows” that contained “enhanced security assets” owned by the federal government. He estimated the cost of damage at $28,000.

Vance on Monday said a “crazy person tried to break in by hammering the windows” on his family’s home and thanked the Secret Service and Cincinnati police for quickly responding to the matter in a social media post.

Celebrity Mastermind viewers were left fuming as they hit out at the BBC over the line-up

Celebrity Mastermind viewers expressed their frustration within minutes of Friday night’s episode, with many voicing the same thing.

BBC host Clive Myrie introduced the latest batch of celebrity contestants on the January 2 instalment, featuring actor Colson Smith, radio presenter Nadia Jae, comedian Grace Campbell, and Blue Peter presenter Joel M.

The four personalities put their knowledge to the test in the iconic black chair, tackling questions on Leeds United under Marcelo Bielsa, Marvel’s Avengers films, actor Robin Williams, and illusionist Derren Brown.

Puzzled viewers took to social media to voice their displeasure, with many admitting they only recognised Colson Smith, whilst criticising the BBC’s choice of guests.

One viewer questioned: “Apart from PC Tinks from #Corrie, who are these other people masquerading as ‘celebrities’?” Another queried: “Shot at fame? So an admission of sorts that many of these aren’t very famous already.”

A third viewer added: “These ‘celebrities’ just get further and further away from the actual label ‘celebrity’ every night. What a joke.”

A fourth remarked: “Oh well. They’ve finally run out of celebrities,” whilst a fifth concurred: “They use the term Celebrity quite loosely, don’t they?”

The celebrity contestants found the quiz challenging, with Nadia Jae managing just eight points across both rounds to finish in fourth place. Joel M secured 13 points for third place.

Whilst Colson achieved 14 points for second, and Grace Campbell emerged victorious with a narrow win on 15 points, highlighting the competitive nature of the contest, reports the Express.

Recent episodes have prompted criticism from viewers, who’ve accused the celebrity edition of featuring “dumbed-down questions”.

One fan fumed, “Celebrity Mastermind is a complete waste of licence money.” Meanwhile many fans where pleased to see the show on their TV screens as another added: “#CelebrityMastermind is back, Thank the lord.”

Since its debut as a spin-off in 2002, Celebrity Mastermind has welcomed numerous high-profile participants, including Stephen Fry and Paul O’Grady.

Celebrity Mastermind is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.