By Mark LaFlamme,Staff Writer

LEWISTON – A Walnut Street man was stabbed in the back Friday during a downtown brawl that began in the first hour of St. Patrick’s Day.

Police said 19-year-old Eric Strout was stabbed twice in the back during a fight on Pierce Street that involved a dozen people with clubs, bottles and knives.

Strout was taken to Central Maine Medical Center where he was in stable condition later Friday.

One man was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct, but as of Friday night, no one had been charged in the stabbing. Police said they are still looking for several people who were involved in the melee.

It began about 12:45 a.m. in a parking lot at Walnut and Pierce streets, police said. There, the combatants squared off with a variety of weapons for reasons police have not yet been able to pin down.

“At this point, we’re not sure what the fight was about,” said Lewiston police Lt. Michael McGonagle. “There are several people we have not been able to speak with. There were others involved that we’ll be looking to track down.”

When police arrived at the scene, they found several people engaged in skirmishes as the fight moved down Pierce Street.

Police said Strout was stabbed as he fought with another man in front of a building between Walnut and Birch streets. Others had bloody noses and similar wounds, but police said no other serious injuries were reported.

Police arrested Randy Gosselin, 22, of 26 Beckett St., Auburn, and charged him with disorderly conduct as a result of the fight. No other arrests had been made by Friday night.

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