Assignment Record– Rev. Joseph A. Fusoni

Summary of Case: Joseph A. Fusoni was ordained for the Boston archdiocese in 1960. He was transferred often during his career, doing parish work in the towns of Ayer, Brookline, Everett, Boston, Lynn, Chelsea, Weymouth, Dedham, Revere, Wakefield and Cambridge. He went on a brief health leave late 1974- early 1975, and a longer leave of absence 1978-79. He died of lung cancer in 1988, at age 55. Fusoni was accused in 1993 of having molested a 15-year-old altar boy in 1985. His accuser reported that the pastor had been told of the abuse, and the pastor said there had been a previous complaint of sexual abuse of a boy by Fusoni.

Born: 1933
Ordained: 1960
Died: July 3, 1988

   

Start Stop Assignment Town/Accusations State Position Notes

2/16/60

Boston archbishop was Richard James Cushing (1944-1970).

2/12/62 St. Mary's Ayer MA

2/2

Parish had a school with 146 boys and 145 girls.
2/13/62 2/11/63 St. Jerome's Weymouth MA 4/4 Parish had a school with 154 boys and 138 girls.
2/12/63 6/06/66 St. Mary's Dedham MA 4/4 Parish had a school with 344-395 boys and 318-398 girls.
6/07/66 6/21/67 Our Lady of Lourdes Revere MA 4/4  
6/22/67 1/08/68 St. Mary of the Assumption Brookline MA Assistant  
1/09/68 3/09/69 St. Therese's Everett MA

3/3

 

  

3/10/69

Following Cushing as archbishop was Humberto Sousa Medeiros (1970-1983).

6/04/70 U.S. Airforce     Chaplain  
6/5/70 10/06/70 St. Cecilia's Boston MA Assistant  
10/07/70 3/03/74 St. Anthony's Revere MA 4/4, 4/5, 3/5  
3/29/74 11/30/74 Sacred Heart Lynn MA Technical Assistant/In Res.  
12/01/74 1/20/75 Health Leave/Our Lady's Hall Milton MA    
1/21/75 7/14/75 Our Lady of Grace Chelsea MA Associate Pastor  
7/15/75 7/20/75 St. Thomas' Wilmington MA 3/3  
1/01/78 11/13/79 Leave of Absence       This is per the archdiocese's assignment history and is not reflected in the Directories.
1976 1979 Immaculate Conception Revere MA 3/3

Parish had a school with 318-301 students.

This assignment is per the Directories, and is not included in the archdiocese's assignment history for Fusoni.

11/14/79

Bernard Francis Law succeeded Medeiros (1984-2002).

7/01/85 St. Joseph's

Wakefield

• Accused in 1993 of having molested a 15-year-old altar boy during the summer of 1985. The victim claimed that the pastor, Fr. O'Sullivan, had been told of the abuse and that O'Sullivan said there had been a previous allegation against Fusoni by the parents of another boy. (Demand letter from personnel file, March 27, 1995)

MA 3/4, 3/3, 2/3 Parish had a school with 160 students.
7/02/85 7/02/88 St. John the Evangelist Cambridge MA 1/4

Parish had a school with 168 students.

Fusoni died July 3, 1988.


Source: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1961-1989); Fusoni Assignment History, Archdiocese of Boston

Priests in a Parish: We use the following convention to show a priest's place among the clergy of a parish: 1/2 means that he is the first priest listed in the Official Catholic Directory (usually the pastor) and that there is a total of two priests at the parish. The shorthand 3/4 means that the priest is listed third on a four-priest roster. See our sample page from the Directory.

Note: The Official Catholic Directory aims to report the whereabouts of Catholic priests in the United States on January 1 of the Directory's publication year. Our working assumption is that a priest listed in the Directory for a given year was at the same assignment for part of the previous year as well. However, Kenedy and Sons will sometimes accept updates well into the year of publication. Diocesan clergy records are rarely available to correct this information. The Directory is also sometimes misleading or wrong. We have tried to create an accurate assignment record, given the source materials and their limitations. Assignment records are a work in progress and we are always improving the records that we post. Please email us with new information and corrections.

This assignment record collates Fusoni's career history as it is represented in the Official Catholic Directory with allegations as reported in the media. We make no representation regarding the truth of the allegation we report, and we remind our readers that the U.S. legal system presumes that a person accused of or charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Similarly, individuals who may be defendants in civil actions are presumed not to be liable for such claims unless a plaintiff proves otherwise. Admissions of guilt or liability are not typically a part of civil or private settlements. For more information, see our posting policy.

This assignment record was last updated on November 9, 2015.