Father Michael Bucaro
Diocese of San Bernardino
Ordained: 1980
Removed: 2014
Assigned as follows:
- 1981-1983: St. Matthew Church (Corona, CA)
- 1984-1986: California Institute for Men (Chino, CA)
- 1986-1988: Priests On Leave (Hales Corners, WI)
- 1989-2010: Southern Conservation Center (Chino, CA)
- 2011-2012: Unknown
- 2013-2014: Leave of Absence
Summary of Abuse Allegations against Father Michael Bucaro:
According to media reports, in October 2004, a lawsuit alleged that Fr. Michael Bucaro sexually abused a boy over a six-year period from 1983 to 1989. The alleged abuse started when the boy was five years old, at both St. Matthew and St. Edward Catholic School, in Corona, California. The lawsuit named the Diocese of San Bernardino and the Diocese of San Diego, as well as the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and the Congregation of the Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a religious order in Wisconsin that Bucaro once belonged to. This was the first and only complaint of its kind found in his personnel file.
Three months later, in 2005, media reports state that Bucaro claimed that he was falsely accused of molestation and filed a slander lawsuit against his accuser. In 2008, as part of a global settlement, the church settled Bucaro’s sexual abuse case.
In October 2018, he was named in the Diocese of San Bernardino’s list of clergy credibly accused of child sexual abuse “for which settlements were paid, but credibility not verified”. He was permanently banned from ministry and retired without faculties in 2014. His current whereabouts are unknown.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of San Bernardino. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in San Bernardino, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Diocese of San Bernardino now have legal options to recover damages due to a compensation fund created for victims. Call us at 888-283-9922 or send an email to [email protected] to discuss your options today.