Hicks K. Patterson Mayhem

I'll begin my first official "Mid-week Mayhem" post with the first mayhem I learned about in my family.

My great-aunt (who I've mentioned in several other posts) told me this story shortly after I began resarching my Patterson ancestors. She said her uncle Hicks (not to be confused with our great [great...] grandfather Hicks) killed his brother over a moonshine still. I didn't particularly do anything with this information and never came across any further information. My great-great aunt made some passing comment about it one time when I mentioned it to her but nothing memorable.
At some point I learned my 3rd great-uncle Asa was convicted of murder (more details on that in another post). One document indicated he had killed his brother so it seemed the story I was told by my aunts was a generation off (the uncle Hicks of my aunts' story was the nephew of Asa).
Low and behold, in 2006 I randomly received an e-mail with the image of a newspaper clipping in it. The sender had been told it was probably from the 1880s, about the time of Asa's problems. When I started looking into the Pattersons mentioned it became clear the clipping was much newer. Just to be sure I even verified the years of service of the Pickens Co., GA Sheriff mentioned. Because the clipping is so new I won't post the image here but here's a summary of what happened (according to the newspaper at least)...
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In late February 1948 Hicks Patterson "slashed" the throat of his brother Edward over the price of a fighting cock. Edward was found lying next to the road alive. He refused to name his assailaint saying he knew who did it but wouldn't say. He survived a few more hours after making this statement.
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There are a few points that are definitely incorrect in this articles. The article states Hicks was 70 and Edward 80, these ages are backwards. Hicks was the older, b. 1867, and Edward was ten years younger. My initial response is to believe the newspaper is at least partially hyping the story since a 70 year old man has his throat "slashed," lies next to the road bleeding, is found and makes a statement, and after several hours finally dies.
Since I only learned in 2006 that the players in this drama were actually those mentioned by my great-aunt, and due to the recent date of the events (i.e. the records aren't microfilmed and accessible in many locations), I haven't been able to pursue this story as much as I would like. I don't know what happened to Hicks K. with regards to this crime. He died in 1950. My great-aunt remembers visiting him. She says he was an old man with a long white beard and he was propped up in a big four poster bed. From this description I'm pretty sure he wasn't in prison. I'm not positive but my great-aunt may have said these visits were at Hicks's home.