Seven people face charges after a 1:30 a.m. New Year's Day brawl at a Deadwood casino among apparent motorcycle gang members, including a Lead man accused of punching Deadwood's police chief.

Lawrence County State's Attorney John Fitzgerald is researching if the fight can be classified as gang-related. That would increase conviction penalties.

According to county court documents, police officers arriving at the Fairmont Hotel-Oyster Bay Bar complex saw two men being struck by several individuals. Officers identified those doing the hitting as members of the Bandidos motorcycle gang and Deadwood Knights, a support club for the Bandidos.

Several gang members fled to the second floor after the police arrived. Police Chief Kelly Fuller joined several officers in a room-by-room search of a vacant part of the building.

"We brought one of the suspects out of the room, down the hall, attempting to take him into custody, when he broke away and punched me in the face," the chief said.

Travis J. Swords, 24, of Lead was still in jail Friday, charged with felony aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest and three counts of simple assault. Bond for Swords, who was identified as a Deadwood Knights member, was set at $5,000.

Fuller was released from a local hospital after treatment for a black eye and a cut that required five stitches.

Also arrested was Jimmy D. Burns, Deadwood, a Deadwood Knights member. Burns, 43, is charged with two counts of simple assault.

Lyle J. Cooper II, 28, of Rapid City was arrested on a Pennington County warrant and charged with two counts of simple assault and one count of obstructing law enforcement for Thursday's fight.

Nicole J. Cooper, 27, of Rapid City was charged with obstructing law enforcement.

Two counts of simple assault also were lodged against an individual identified only as a Bandido, and against Peter E. Snyder, 38, of Rapid City.

Court documents on the seventh individual arrested were not available Friday.

Dave Baumbach, an Oyster Bay employee, said Bandidos members were having a private party on the Fairmont Hotel mezzanine before the fight. Baumbach said the 30 to 35 people attending were coming and going from the second-floor party to play slot machines and join in karaoke elsewhere in the complex.

The partygoers were leaving to get breakfast when the fight broke out, Baumbach said. "Something exploded somewhere; I don't know who or why."