OSCAR-nominated actor Gary Busey has pleaded guilty to a sex crime after allegedly groping a woman at a horror movie convention in New Jersey.
The Lethal Weapon star, 81, admitted during a Zoom court hearing on Thursday that the incident was “not an accidental touching”.
Court TVGary Busey pleads guilty to sex charge[/caption]
AlamyBusey is known for starring in Lethal Weapon[/caption]
Cherry Hill Police DepartmentCherry Hill police release body cam video of questioning of actor Gary Busey[/caption]
Busey was accused of inappropriately grabbing two women’s buttocks and attempting to unhook another woman’s bra during a photo shoot at the Monster-Mania convention at the Doubletree Hotel in Cherry Hill on August 13, 2022.
One victim claimed Busey placed his face near her chest and allegedly asked “where she got them” before reaching for her bra strap.
Busey initially denying any wrongdoing — even telling paparazzi in Malibu that “none of that happened” and the women “made up a story”.
But the actor has now pleaded guilty to one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact.
Under a plea deal, three other counts of criminal sexual contact and one count of attempted criminal sexual contact were dropped.
The actor now faces between one and five years of probation and fines.
He will also have a criminal record and must submit a DNA sample.
His sentencing is scheduled for September 18 via Zoom.
Judge Gwendolyn Blue denied a motion from Busey’s defense attorney, Blair Zwillman, who argued the case should be dismissed due to what he called a “faulty investigation” and alleged failures by police to question certain witnesses.
A police affidavit from 2022 claims that after detectives contacted Busey, he told them “sometimes it is possible to accidentally touch someone in a specific body part”.
He also allegedly even asked authorities to apologise to two victims and persuade them not to press charges.
In a statement at the time, Monster-Mania Convention said Busey was “removed from the convention and instructed not to return” immediately after complaints were received.
“The safety and well-being of all our attendees is of the utmost importance,” attorney Nikitas Moustakas said, adding that attendees were encouraged to file police reports.
The guilty plea marks the latest controversy for the veteran actor.
Just days after being charged in 2022, Busey was photographed in Malibu with his pants down on a public bench, his hand buried in his crotch.
His spokesperson later claimed he may have needed to relieve himself, saying, “Perhaps at his age, he realised he couldn’t get to the bathroom in time.”
Busey, who rose to fame with his Oscar-nominated role in The Buddy Holly Story, has a history of troubling incidents.
In 2011, a former Celebrity Apprentice employee accused him of sexual assault, telling the Daily Beast that he groped her and forced her hand onto his genitals.
He also faced drug charges in 1995 after police reportedly found cocaine and marijuana at his Malibu home, and has been arrested in the past on suspicion of spousal abuse.
The actor’s son, Jake Busey, has previously said his father was never the same after a 1988 motorcycle crash that caused severe brain damage, claiming the injury left him “more impulsive and prone to anger and delusions of grandeur.”
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GettyBusey pictured in New York City, 2018[/caption]
GettyBusey speaking to the press about his near fatal motorcyle accident and his opposition to the mandatory laws for motorcyclists over 21 to wear helmets on March 1, 1989[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
