Timothy Busfield was free as a bird Wednesday for the first time since surrendering to cops last week … and we have pics of him after his release.

“The West Wing” actor was draped in all black, carrying a bottled water as he walked without the shackles or armed guards we’d grown accustomed to seeing him with since January 13, when he turned himself in on child sex abuse charges.

Busfield was picked up by a limo from his posh New Mexico Airbnb — $750 a night — and was joined by a member of his legal team.

His wife, Melissa Gilbert, was also snapped, waving goodbye to him from the doorway of the castle-looking estate.

As we reported, prosecutors suffered a huge loss yesterday when a judge ruled that he wasn’t the danger to society they tried to paint him as.

In fact, Busfield’s lawyers argued the whole case was rooted in revenge by angry parents they accused of being straight-up con artists.

Remember … Busfield has been charged with child sexual abuse, involving 2 boys who were part of the cast of “The Cleaning Lady” in 2022. Prosecutors claim Busfield touched them inappropriately.

But the defense claims the stories were invented as retaliation after the boys were cut from the final season of the show.

TMZ obtained audio of the twin boys being interviewed by cops in November 2024. When the officer asked them if Tim ever touches their privates, they both said, “No.”

“Hannah Montana” was not inspired by “Lizzie McGuire” in “any shape or form,” TMZ has learned … following Hilary Duff‘s comments that she was “sure” the ‘Lizzie McGuire Movie’ helped shape the show.

We caught up with the creator of “Hannah Montana,” Michael Poryes, who says Disney pitched him the ​idea to create a show about a popstar … and he came up with the concept in a small garage office in Los Angeles.

He tells us there was “zero” inspiration derived from “Lizzie McGuire” — he had never even seen the movie — saying he’d watched maybe 1 or 2 episodes of the series when he went to brainstorm ideas that would eventually lead him to “Hannah Montana.”

Vanna White has finally solved the puzzle … the longtime “Wheel of Fortune” icon just tied the knot!

Vanna announced the big news on IG Wednesday, sharing a sweet snap of real estate developer John Donaldson scooping up his brand-new bride as they posed for a pic from their big day.

Vanna kept it simple in the caption, writing, “Surprise! We got married!” … adding the couple has been in love for more than a decade and quietly decided to make it official in a private ceremony.

The two were first introduced back in 2012 — and this wedding is a pretty big plot twist, considering as recently as Oct ’23, Vanna told PEOPLE she felt so comfortable in the relationship, she didn’t see the need to get married.