Of the 12 arrested on Saturday, seven were booked at the Anaheim Detention Facility, according to a statement released by Anaheim Police. 
 
 Three people were stabbed, one with a flagpole, and 12 people were arrested during a brawl on Saturday morning between self-described Ku Klux Klan members and counter-protesters at an Anaheim park, police said. 
 
 Initially arrested were five Klan members – four men and a woman – and seven counter-protesters – five men, a male juvenile and a woman. Seven people were booked in the Anaheim jail on assault or abuse charges. Police are seeking one additional suspect who can be seen in a video of the altercation punching a Klansman. 
 
 “I’ve lived in Anaheim my whole life and I have never heard of anything like this,” said Anaheim resident Joe Castaneda, who saw the melee break out. 
 
 The confrontation occurred at around noon after a group of six KKK members showed up at Pearson Park, a witness said. Klan leaders earlier this week announced their intention to hold a rally there, and a group of about 30 counter-protesters were waiting for them. 
 
 One of the counter-protesters was stabbed with the decorative end of a flagpole, said Anaheim police Sgt. Daron Wyatt. An officer responding to the scene saw one of the Klansmen stab a counter-protester with a knife. The Klansman admitted to stabbing the man, but told the officers that it was self-defense, Wyatt said. 
 
 The counter-protesters and the Klansmen briefly had words before the fight began, Castaneda said. 
 
 He said the counter-protesters were telling the Klansmen that they weren’t welcome in the community and to get out. He couldn’t hear what the Klansmen were saying. 
 
 “Some words were exchanged and that is pretty much when the fight began,” Castaneda said. 
 
 The Klansmen were badly outnumbered, Castaneda said, forcing most of them to get back into a black SUV and try to flee. They left three Klansmen behind. 
 
 “It was just the three of them against a whole crowd,” Castaneda said. 
 
 At one point, Castaneda said, one of the Klansmen lunged at him with the flagpole, but backed away after Castaneda stepped back and showed the man a cane he uses to walk. 
 
 The men were wearing military type clothing, Castaneda said. “They were definitely dressed up (for) the occasion.” 
 
 The man stabbed by the flag pole was taken to a hospital in critical condition, Wyatt said, but his condition later improved. The second stabbing victim suffered lesser injuries. The extent of injuries for the third victim, found in a vehicle on Lemon Street, was not clear. All victims are expected to survive. 
 
 Warning: The following video contains graphic footage. 
 
 Anaheim police on Friday sent a Twitter message out telling the community that they were aware of the planned KKK rally. The message noted that several other rallies have occurred over the past few years, with a small group of Klansman passing out “literature” and holding signs. 
 
 Counter-protesters had been at the park since early Saturday morning awaiting the rally, according to a witness who had been there since 9 a.m. 
 
 “You could feel the pulsing energy. I know that people were watching the street to see when the Klansmen would show up,” said Melodye Shore of Laguna Niguel, who was observing the protest with a friend. “As soon as they saw that van, they were just all over it.” 
 
 She said police response was not immediate. 
 
 “I would think that they would be a physical presence, considering that they did know that there was a planned activity,” she said. “They should have been right there. But no, it took awhile. I had time to take a bunch of pictures before the police showed up.” 
 
 Anaheim Police said in a news release they had a contingent of officers dedicated to the event. “Those officers were on scene immediately as the violence erupted and called for additional personnel,” according to the statement. 
 
 On Saturday, most of the protesters were gone by mid-afternoon, with a group of about two-dozen park visitors remaining to watch police go over the portion of Cypress Street where the conflict occurred. 
 
 The Klan once had a strong presence in Anaheim, and at the Pearson Park site. 
 
 On April 14, 1924, Anaheim voters elected four of five City Council members who secretly belonged to the Klan. 
 
 Many city workers resigned, but nine of Anaheim's 10 police officers supported the Klan – which held parades, painted the streets with K.I.G.Y. for “Klansmen I Greet You,” and stationed gunmen on buildings to shoot anyone dousing their burning crosses. 
 
 In August 1924, the Klan staged its largest rally ever in the state, drawing 10,000 people to what is now called Pearson Park. Within a year, however, on Feb. 3, 1925, more than 95 percent of the voters turned out to recall the Klansmen and reclaim their town. 
 
 Wyatt said police are seeking video footage of the melee. 
 
 "We know there were all kinds of people out here with video, and we need that," he said. 
 
 He asked witnesses to call Orange County Crime Stoppers at 855-847-6227. 
 
 Staff writer Samuel Mountjoy contributed to this report. ||||| A Ku Klux Klansman, left, uses an American flag to fend off angry counter protesters after members of the KKK tried to start a "White Lives Matter" rally at Pearson Park in Anaheim, Calif., on Saturday,... (Associated Press) 
 
 A Ku Klux Klansman, left, uses an American flag to fend off angry counter protesters after members of the KKK tried to start a "White Lives Matter" rally at Pearson Park in Anaheim, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016. The event quickly escalated into violence and at least two people had to be treated... (Associated Press) 
 
 ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Latest on the stabbings at a Ku Klux Klan gathering in Southern California Saturday (all times local): 
 
 2:44 p.m. 
 
 Authorities say 13 people are in custody following a violent altercation that left three people stabbed at a Ku Klux Klan gathering in Southern California. 
 
 A spokesman with the Anaheim Police Department says six of those arrested are Klan supporters and seven counter-protesters. 
 
 All three people who were stabbed are believed to be counter-protesters. One person is in critical condition. 
 
 Sgt. Daron Wyatt says a Klan member was stomped on by counter-protesters during another altercation. 
 
 The KKK has a long history in Southern California, with Klansmen holding elected office in Anaheim in the 1920s. 
 
 ___ 
 
 1:26 p.m. 
 
 Police say two people have been stabbed at a Ku Klux Klan gathering in Southern California. 
 
 Sgt. Daron Wyatt with the Anaheim Police Department tells The Associated Press two people who were part of a counter-protest at a KKK gathering Saturday afternoon in Anaheim were stabbed in separate incidents. 
 
 One person is in custody in one of the stabbings. 
 
 Wyatt says a Klan member was stomped on by counter-protesters during another altercation. Three people have been detained. 
 
 No information on any of victims' conditions was immediately available. 
 
 Authorities say the investigation is ongoing.
– Authorities say 13 people are in custody following a violent altercation that left three people stabbed at a Ku Klux Klan gathering in Southern California, the AP reports. A spokesman with the Anaheim Police Department says six of those arrested are Klan supporters and seven counter-protesters. All three people who were stabbed are believed to be counter-protesters. One person is in critical condition and one was stabbed in the upper torso by the tip of a flagpole, the Orange County Register reports. A man wearing a "Grand Dragon" shirt was seen kicked by protesters, the LA Times reports, and Brian Levin, director of CSU San Bernardino's Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, says he pushed a Klan leader away during the violence. "How do you feel that a Jewish guy just saved your life?" Levin says he asked him. According to Levin, the man replied, "Thank you." The KKK's history in Anaheim goes way back: The hate group held four out of five seats on the City Council before being ousted during a recall effort in 1924. Almost 300 Klansmen once lived in the city, where they patrolled with masks and robes and once held a rally that drew 20,000. But recent activities have been "sporadic," says the Times, which notes two incidents of KKK fliers distributed last year.