Downtown Fight Results in Two Arrests

Two State Street brawls early Sunday morning resulted in the arrest of three men – a relatively small number considering a police statement’s estimation of more than a hundred people gathered to watch the blows being thrown.

Police investigated the first incident at 1:31 a.m., a fight at the club Statemynt, 519 State St. According to the police press release from spokesperson Sgt. Lorenzo Duarte, while officers were detaining subjects during this altercation, bystanders began directing them to a fight up the block. Once at the scene of this second fight, officers saw 20-30 people gathered – some participating in the fight, some just watching. Officers told the crowd to disperse, but no one responded. The fight continued, Duarte explained, and officers began using Tasers. The number of bystanders increased to more than 100 people.

In the end, police arrested a 26-year-old Santa Barbara man on an outstanding felony warrant, as well as a 24-year-old Santa Barbara man on charges of resisting and delaying officers and a 34-year-old Oxnard man. Duarte noted that the Oxnard man was only cited, while the 24-year-old Santa Barbara man was booked into Santa Barbara County Jail.