BELLINGHAM - An uninvited partygoer was beaten by two men after falling down a flight of stairs at a Meridian Street apartment Sunday night, Oct. 21, police said.
A party was going on at the second-story apartment at 2711 Meridian a little before 8 p.m. when a drunken "stranger" showed up uninvited and started acting oddly, said Bellingham police spokesman Mark Young. The 25-year-old Bellingham man was shouting and barking at a dog. People told him to leave, but he wouldn't go.
When he was being kicked out, he fell down one flight of stairs. Officers are trying to determine if he was pushed, Young said.
Police believe he was punched and kicked by two men - Johnny Garland Burnham, 22, and resident Jordan Michael Jones, 22 - at the bottom of the stairs. Many people at the party witnessed the assault, Young said.
When paramedics showed up, a police report noted "every compassionate attempt" to help the victim was met with cussing and name-calling. He was taken to St. Joseph hospital for his injuries: bruises, cuts and scrapes.
Burnham and Jones were arrested on suspicion of third-degree assault, a felony. Depending on what further investigation reveals, Young said, the victim may face charges of disorderly conduct or trespassing.
