Joel Severino, age 27, of Lawrence, Massachusetts

HOLLIS – Numerous combatants allegedly using large sticks and good-sized stones as weapons clashed over the weekend at Silver Lake State Park, resulting in one arrest and injuries to at least three people, police said.

Police said officers were called to the park, typically a popular destination for families for its wooded picnic areas and long sandy beach along the 34-acre lake, for a report of a large disturbance on Friday.

Due to the number of people reportedly involved in the skirmish, police said officers from Brookline also responded, as did fire department medical personnel.

Upon arrival, officers “determined that a large fight had occurred within the state park between two groups of people unknown to one another,” police said.

After speaking with numerous witnesses as part of their investigation, officers arrested Joel Severino, 27, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, and charged him with two counts of second-degree assault, Class B felonies.

Silver Lake State Park, Hollis, NH

Severino was booked and later released on bail pending arraignment, which is scheduled for Aug. 6 in Hillsborough County Superior Court South in Nashua.

Officers also learned from witnesses that “several people were … using large pieces of wood and rocks as weapons,” and that “several juveniles were either directly involved” in the incident or had witnessed it, or both, police said.

The three people who sustained what police described as minor injuries were treated at the scene by emergency medical personnel.

They were not transported to a hospital at the time, police said, but two of them later sought assistance at local hospitals and were released a short time later.

Police said the investigation into the incident is ongoing, and additional charges are possible.

They ask anyone who may have witnessed the incident, or who has additional information, to contact police headquarters at 465-7637.

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Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

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