This article discusses sexual assault. If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, you can call RAINN's national sexual assault hotline at 1-800-656-4673 for confidential support. 

MILWAUKEE — Rembert G. Weakland, who was the ninth archbishop of Milwaukee from 1977 to 2002, died overnight, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee said Monday.

Weakland, 95, died at Clement Manor in Greenfield, where he lived. The death comes after a battle with a “long illness,” according to the archdiocese.

Pope Paul VI appointed Weakland to be Milwaukee’s archbishop on Sept. 20, 1977. He was ordained a bishop and installed as the archbishop on Nov. 8, 1977.

Weakland retired in 2002, when he was involved in multiple sex abuse controversies, just as the Catholic Church on the whole was in the spotlight for how it handled claims of clerical sexual abuse all around the world.

"His legacy, as is pretty clear, is complicated," Neal Pease, a professor emeritus of history at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, said. "It's full of accomplishments and honors, and also well-documented at the end, controversy and disgrace."

A former Marquette University theology student accused Weakland of sexually assaulting him. Weakland claimed it was a consensual relationship, but the archdiocese paid $450,000 to the student.

Weakland was also accused of shredding copies of reports of clergy sexual abuse while he was archbishop.

The archdiocese removed Weakland’s name from the pastoral center at St. John the Evangelist, where he was ordained a bishop and installed as the archbishop, over sex abuse scandals.

Peter Isely, program director of Nate's Mission, issued the following statement: 

Nate's Mission is an initiative of Ending Clergy Abuse. The coalition is comprised of survivor activists, faith leaders, academics, and human rights advocates who want to "reform secular and church institutions where there is evidence of widespread sexual abuse and institutional cover-up." 

“For a quarter of a century, Archbishop Weakland led the Archdiocese of Milwaukee and his leadership embodied his Benedictine spirit,” said the Jerome E. Listecki, archbishop of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. “His pastoral letter, ‘Eucharist without Walls,’ evoked his love for the Eucharist and its call to service. During his time, he emphasized an openness to the implementation of the teachings of the Second Vatican Council, including the role of lay men and women in the Church, the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy, Ecumenical dialog and addressing societal issues, especially economic justice. May he now rest in peace.”

Funeral arrangements are pending, per the archdiocese.