Gary Busey, the famous character actor, entered his guilty plea to criminal sexual contact in a remote court appearance via video on Thursday. To wit, the 81-year-old actor recently pleaded guilty to groping a woman at a genre convention for horror films in New Jersey. This particular incident dates back to 2022. First, that Busey groped the rear ends of two women. He then tried to unhook a third woman’s bra in the process getting within inches of her chest.
In the attached court documents, Busey is described as wearing his hearing aid at full volume. Even so, he had a hard time hearing the action taking place all around him. His legal woes have understandably attracted a lot of public scrutiny, especially considering his history of prior arrests and still pending allegations. Busey has a long and documented history. He has an arrest record for spousal abuse and was accused of sexually assaulting a female employee while he appeared on Celebrity Apprentice in 2011.
Since then, Busey has established a complex and dynamic career in cinema and television, with an impressive 100 plus credits under his belt. He achieved it at a young age for his star-making role in the 1978 film The Buddy Holly Story. His brilliant work ultimately nabbed him an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. While Busey’s career has seen remarkable successes, his life has suffered major personal struggles. In 1995, he experienced a life-threatening cocaine overdose that resulted in criminal drug charges.
Busey’s guilty plea follows a series of other, similar high-profile convictions. He will serve one to five years of probation and be required to provide DNA evidence to state officials. The legal ramifications of this decision cast a troubling light on the entertainment industry’s storied history of predatory conduct and the repercussions they do not face.