7 ARRESTED AFTER NIGHTCLUB SHOOTINGS.

Byline: Charles F. Bostwick and Holly Edwards Staff Writers

Three men and one woman were shot after an argument in a Lancaster nightclub led to gunfire, officials said Saturday.

Six San Fernando Valley men and a 17-year-old boy were arrested in connection with the shooting as they fled, said Deputy Rick Nolte of the Lancaster sheriff's station.

All of the victims remained in stable condition Saturday at the Antelope Valley Hospital in Lancaster, Nolte said.

The shootings took place in two locations outside the club.

Two men and a woman were shot in the parking lot of Leonardo's nightclub on 10th Street West, and a third man was wounded by a shot fired from a vehicle that drove past his car on Avenue I minutes later, deputies said.

``Something breaks out on the dance floor, it goes outside and bang-bang- bang, we got a shooting,'' Nolte said.

Nightclub patrons fled after the 1:25 a.m. shooting, deputies said, and the driver of a Volvo who may have been speeding away from it with lights out collided with another vehicle, injuring the other driver, Nolte said The crash occurred at the intersection of West 17th Street and Avenue I.

The driver of the Volvo, Alfonzo Star, 38, of Van Nuys, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, officials said.

The collision injured John Taylor, 38, who deputies said was hospitalized in stable condition at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia.

``The car (Star hit) flipped over and took out a fire hydrant,'' said Nolte. ``He clobbered the guy.''

Detectives were trying Saturday to sort out the facts of the shooting, which deputies said might have been an encounter between rival out-of-area gangs at the local nightclub. Shell casings found in the parking lot indicated that more than one gun was fired.

Deputies released no names for the four victims but said all are expected to live.

The suspects fled in two dark-colored SUVs and were apprehended about 40 minutes in the San Fernando Valley by California Highway Patrol officers and Santa Clarita sheriff's deputies, officials said.

A 9 mm semiautomatic handgun was recovered from one of the vehicles, but officials believe more than one weapon was involved in the shooting, Nolte said.

The suspects were arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and remained jailed Saturday at the Lancaster sheriff's station in lieu of $30,000 bail each, Nolte said.

Officials identified those arrested on suspicion of attempted murder as Jamal Bilal, 22, of Granada Hills; Michael Fontenette, 34, of Pacoima; Tarhonne Boyd, 28, of Sylmar; Jason Harvey, 19, of Northridge; Russell Baldwin, 28, of Pacoima; Christopher Banks, 24, of Granada Hills; and a 17-year-old Panorama City boy.

All the men were being held at Lancaster sheriff's station without bail. The boy was taken to the Challenger Memorial Youth Center juvenile hall.