A New Mexico judge dismissed actor and director Timothy Busfield’s indictment on child sexual abuse charges Friday, granting a defense request to throw out the grand jury action. Busfield had been indicted on four counts of criminal sexual contact with a minor.

District Court Judge Joseph Montano concluded that problems with the prosecution’s handling of the grand jury proceedings warranted dismissal. The decision does not prevent the state from beginning another criminal case against Busfield.

In a court filing obtained by Fox News Digital, Montano found that the prosecutor “failed to act in a fair and impartial manner,” including by failing “to properly instruct the grand jury on the law for calling witnesses and in instructing the grand jurors on a procedure that effectively withheld requested witnesses.”

The judge said those issues compromised protections built into the grand jury process. “In doing so, the grand jury proceedings were conducted in a manner that violated grand jury statutes designed to protect the structural integrity of our grand jury system, and the presumption of prejudice applies.”

Although the indictment was dismissed, Montano made clear that prosecutors retained the option to pursue the matter again. “The State, however, remains free to institute new criminal proceedings against Defendant,” the filing adds.

During a September hearing, Busfield’s attorney, Amanda Fayerberg, played audio recordings of grand jurors requesting testimony from additional witnesses. She argued that prosecutors wrongly told the jurors subpoenas would be required, even though the witnesses were “present, available and willing to testify.”

Bernalillo County District Attorney Greer Staley challenged the defense’s position. Staley said the defense had not used the proper process to submit evidence and maintained that Busfield improperly and “excessively” attempted to direct grand jurors toward favorable witnesses and exhibits during testimony lasting three hours.

Nancy Laflin, communications director for the 2nd Judicial District Attorney, said the office was reviewing the ruling. “Our office has received the order and is evaluating our options to determine how we will proceed.”

Busfield has repeatedly denied the allegations. Fayerberg told The Associated Press in an email Friday that Busfield was “relieved and grateful” after reading Montano’s decision.

When Busfield was indicted earlier this year, attorney Larry Stein criticized the case and said a “grand jury will indict a ham sandwich.” Stein argued that the proceedings were moving forward despite what he described as deep problems with the evidence.

“What is deeply concerning is that the district attorney is choosing to proceed on a case that is fundamentally unsound and cannot be proven at trial. The detention hearing exposed fatal weaknesses in the state’s evidence, gaps that no amount of charging decisions can cure,” Stein said in February.

“This prosecution appears driven by something other than the facts or the law,” Stein added. “Mr. Busfield will fight these charges at every stage and looks forward to testing the state’s case in open court — where evidence matters — not behind closed doors.”

Busfield, 68, surrendered to local authorities Jan. 13, several days after an arrest warrant was issued for the “West Wing” actor. At the time, he was held without bail on two counts of criminal sexual contact with a minor and one count of child abuse.

Busfield denied the claims when he surrendered and was “determined to clear his name,” according to a statement from Stein. He later received a conditional release from the 2nd District Judicial Court at the Bernalillo County Courthouse in Albuquerque.

“You're authorized for release on your own recognizance with the conditions that you appear at all future court settings,” Judge Murphy said. “You have not violated any laws.”

The arrest warrant concerned alleged misconduct while Busfield was working as a director on the television series “The Cleaning Lady.” According to the warrant, twins who were 11 alleged that Busfield, whom they had been instructed to call Uncle Tim on set, touched them inappropriately.

One twin alleged that an incident occurred while the child was alone with Busfield in a bedroom on the set. The warrant states that hospital professionals later told the parents that the children showed signs of being “groomed.”

It remains unclear whether prosecutors will bring new criminal charges after the dismissal of the indictment.

The opinions expressed by contributors and/or content partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Conservative Scoop. Contact us for guidelines on submitting your own commentary.