Rev. Eugene D. Corbesero, i.m.c.

Summary of Case: Corbesero was a priest of the Consolata Society for Foreign Missions in Michigan, New Jersey, Connecticut, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. He left the order in 1979 or 1981 and was laicized in 1983. He married and was later widowed. In August 2006 the parents of a 12- year-old boy reported to police that Corbesero molested him at a sleepover at Corbesero's New Jersey home. Corbesero admitted the abuse and was convicted of sexual assault and endangering the welfare of a child. He was sentenced in October 2007 to five years in prison. He died in 2016.

In December 2019 the Diocese of Charlotte released a list credibly accused clerics, which included Corbesero. It noted that in 1995 the diocese received a report that Corbersero sexually abused a teenage boy sometime between 1973 and 1975, while assigned to Our Lady of Consolation in Charlotte.

Ordained: 1962
Died: 2016

   

Start Stop Parish Town/Accusations State Position Notes

1962

Grand Rapids bishop was Allen James Babcock (1954-1969)

1963 Our Lady of Sorrows (Italian) Grand Rapids MI  

1963

Trenton bishop was George William Ahr (1950-1979)

1971 Consolata Society for Foreign Missions Somerset NJ Vocation Director beginning in 1965; not listed as such, however, in the 1976 Directory.  
1971 1972       Corbesero is indexed as at the Consolata Society for Foreign Missions in the 1972 Directory, but he is not listed in the Trenton diocesan pages as there.

1972

Hartford archbishop was John Francis Whealon (1968-1991)

1973   Milford CT Corbesero is indexed as at
1 Glenn St., Milford, CT.

1973

Charlotte bishop was Michael Joseph Begley (1971-1984)

1976 Our Lady of Consolation Charlotte

• Per the diocese on its list in December 2019, it received a report in 1995 that Corbesero sexually abused a teenage boy sometime between 1973 and 1975.
 NC 1/3, 1/2 Parish had a school with 352-300 students.
1973 1976 St. Dorothy's Lincolnton NC   This was a mission of Our Lady of Consolation in Charlotte.

1976

Louis Edward Gelineau (1971-1997)

1979? St. Lawrence's Centredale RI 3/3 The 1979 Directory indexes Corbesero as at St. Lawrence's but it does not list him as there in the Providence archdiocesan pages. He does not appear in the Directories after 1978. He left the order to marry in 1979 or 1981.
1979? 2007  

Franklin Township

• In Aug. 2006 Corbesero was charged with the sexual assault of a 12- year-old boy during a sleepover at Corbesero's home. Corbesero acknowledged the assault.

NJ  

Corbesero was laicized in 1983.

A "confidential informant" told prosecutors in 2006 that Corbesero may have been accused of child sexual abuse in the past. A judge would not allow prosecutors to review Corbesero's personnel file from his time as a priest.

In Oct. 2007 Corbesero was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison.

 

Sources: Official Catholic Directory (New York: P.J. Kenedy and Sons, 1963-1978)

• Court Denies State Request for Files in Abuse Case, By Jennifer Golson, Star-Ledger (Newark, New Jersey), May 9, 2007
• Ex-Priest Apologizes for Molesting Boy, Star-Ledger (Newark, New Jersey), October 6, 2007
• Ex-franklin Priest Loses Appeal of Sentence in Sex Case, By Michael Deak, Home News Tribune, December 26, 2008
• Ex-priest Loses Appeal on Child Abuse Charge, By Nyier Abdou, The Star-Ledger, December 27, 2008


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 Corbesero'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 January 8, 2019.