Father Joseph Brocato
Ordained: 1926
Retired: 1972
Died: 1992
Assignment History:
- 1928-1929: Working Boys Home (Newton Highlands, MA)
- 1930: St. Joseph School (Somerville, MA)
- 1931-1933: St. Mary's Industrial School (Baltimore, MD)
- 1934: Leonard Hall (Leonardtown, MD)
- 1935: Cathedral School (Richmond, VA)
- 1936-1938: Holy Cross School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1940-1946: St. Teresa School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1947-1950: St. Joseph Preparatory (Bardstown, KY)
- 1951-1955: St. Matthew School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1957-1966: Holy Name School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1967: Holy Cross School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1968: Nazareth High School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1969: Holy Name School (Brooklyn, NY)
- 1970-1971: Leonard Hall (Leonardtown, MD)
Summary of Abuse Allegations Against Father Joseph Brocato:
Father Joseph Brocato, a native of Italy, was a member of the Brothers of St. Francis Xavier and worked in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and Brooklyn, NY. In 2019, Fr. Brocato was listed on the Archdiocese of Baltimore and the Xaverian Brothers' List of Credibly Accused of Sexual Abuse of Minors list. In April 2023, Maryland's Attorney General released a report alleging 156 Catholic clergy members sexually abused at least 600 children over six decades. The report lists the names of the abusers, including Father Brocato.
According to media reports, in 2002, a man alleged that he was sexually abused dozens of times as a child by Brocato. The abuse took place over a 4-year period in the 1960s, starting when the man was a 10-year-old boy until he was 13. The abuse allegedly occurred in a classroom closet at Holy Name of Jesus Elementary School in Brooklyn, New York, where Brocato worked, in bathhouse locker rooms, swimming pool changing rooms, and under the Coney Island boardwalk. The Xaverians settled with the man for $75,000.
Brocato's whereabouts and whether he had access to children from when he retired in 1972 until his death in 1992 are unknown.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in Maryland, contact our office today. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse nationwide. We can help. Contact us at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.