Gilroy Garlic Festival Marred by Violence
Mounted police kept a close eye on revelers at the Gilroy Garlic Festival on Sunday after fights and a stabbing forced organizers to close early the night before.
Police sprayed Mace and made at least eight arrests Saturday after 15 fistfights broke out among drunken young men, Gilroy Police Chief Vern Gardner said.
The most serious injury was the stabbing of a 24-year-old man who was airlifted to Valley Medical Center in San Jose. He was in good condition Sunday with a stab wound in his back.
“It was too many (fights) to handle. . . . It really, really got out of hand,” Gardner said.
The annual Garlic Festival draws hundreds of thousands of tourists to the town each summer.
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