Friends of both the victim and the suspect of an Auburn stabbing say neither was a violent person.

Britton Reed, 21, was recovering Tuesday at Sutter Roseville Medical Center from stab wounds he received early Monday morning in an apparent fight.

Michael R. Lane, 32, of Auburn has been arrested in connection with the incident that occurred around 2 a.m. in the parking lot next to Encore Music.

“I’ve known Mike for more than 10 years and I’ve never even seen him argue with anyone,” said Brooke McAllister who works at Bob and Betty’s 160 Club where the altercation between Lane and Reed reportedly began.

According to Lt. Scott Burns of the Auburn Police Department, the incident started just before 2 a.m. as the Cleveland Avenue bar was closing.

Lane and Reed were involved in an argument which escalated. That reportedly turned into a physical altercation and the two ended up on the ground fighting, Burns said. Reed was stabbed multiple times with a folding knife that was recovered at the scene.

Reed was listed in critical condition Tuesday, according to Liz Madison, spokeswoman for Sutter Roseville Medical Center.

Reed’s family did not respond by press time to requests for comment. However, one of the young man’s former Placer High School teachers expressed his concern for Reed, whom he called a “super person.”

“I taught thousands of students and he’s in the top handful,” said Harry Hickman who now teaches science at Colfax High. “He’s bright, kind and attentive to personal relationships.”

Hickman said he reads the Journal daily and sometimes is not surprised by the events that unfold in the area.

“This one shocks me,” he said. “You wonder what goes on at two in the morning in Auburn.”

As of press time Tuesday Lane had not been formally charged with any crime, although he remains jailed.

“He’s been arrested but at this point not charged with a crime pending further investigation,” said Scott Owens, senior deputy district attorney for the Placer County District Attorney’s Office.

For McAllister the allegations against her friend, Lane, are out of character.

“He’s really easy going,” she said. “He doesn’t go to bars that much. This is just really out of character.”

She expressed her concern for Reed as well as her friend.

“This (incident) was unfortunate for everyone,” McAllister said.

Lane remains in custody in the Placer County Jail without bail and is expected to be arraigned today on a single charge of attempted murder.

The Journal’s Penne Usher can be reached at penneu@goldcountrymedia.com or post a comment.