By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

An 87-year-old man who was charged in the 2010 stabbing death of his wife in a Pelham neighborhood died on Dec. 11 while in the care of a local hospice, one of his attorneys confirmed on Dec. 12.

William Virgil Proctor was an Alzheimer’s and dementia patient, and was under round-the-clock medical care before he died, said Proctor’s attorney, Barry Alvis.

Proctor was arrested by Pelham police officers on May 14, 2010 and charged with stabbing and killing his 77-year-old wife, Gwendolyn Elizabeth Tuggle Proctor, while she slept at the couple’s house in the 1300 block of Calliston Way in Pelham’s Ballantrae neighborhood.

In 2012, Shelby County Circuit Court Judge Dan Reeves ordered Proctor undergo a psychiatric evaluation.

In a motion filed by Alvis in Shelby County Circuit Court in September, Alvis requested the court dismiss the charges against Proctor and instead place him in the care of a secure nursing facility.

Over the past several months, Proctor’s physical condition and mental condition deteriorated significantly, and Proctor became unable to walk independently, according to Alvis’ motion.

Included in Alvis’ motion were copies of reports submitted by forensic psychologist Glen King and by the Taylor Hardin Secure Medical Facility in Tuscaloosa. Both reports claimed Proctor was unable to stand trial due to his medical condition, and requested he be placed in a secure medical facility.