A 17-year-old Franklin High School student committed suicide last week after falling from a fourth-floor railing on campus, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The Los Angeles County medical examiner listed Xavier Nugare-Martinez’s manner of death in an online database Tuesday, noting he suffered multiple blunt force trauma injuries to his head and torso.
Officials have not yet released details about the situation ahead of the fall.
But videos widely circulated online showed an argument between two students in a classroom on Wednesday. Footage seen by The Times shows one boy punching another boy as he lies on the ground. The teacher stood between the students, and the boy on the ground slowly stood up. The student who was assaulted took a step back and pushed the other student.
The attacker still looked agitated, while the older teacher continued to stand between the two, yelling at the agitated student to “stop” and “calm down.”
The boy who was hit turned and walked away. The attacker then punched the other boy again, knocking him to the ground. He then ran out the door and the boy who attacked shouted racial slurs at him and told him to run.
In another video, the boy who was struck is seen near a railing in a hallway outside a classroom. At this point, the boy who appeared to be the attacker approached. The boy at the railing then jumped over it.
Los Angeles police have not released details of the investigation or whether any arrests have been made.
Highland Park schools have been filled with grief since Nugare-Martinez’s death, and hundreds of people attended a memorial service on campus the next day.
Concerns were also raised about bullying and a lack of safety and security in schools.
A new petition posted online by someone claiming to be a member of Xavier’s extended family says the 17-year-old boy “died at Franklin High School in Highland Park due to an avoidable bullying incident.”
The petition, which identifies the boy as Xavier Amaya Nungaray, calls on the Los Angeles Unified School District to install more security cameras on campus, install more guards on railings and ensure a police presence on all campuses.
The Los Angeles Unified School District’s primary discipline strategy is based on a counseling practice called restorative justice, which emphasizes that students learn to take personal responsibility for their actions and take steps to correct the consequences of inappropriate behavior.
The school system has increased personnel to support the approach, while banning school police from entering campuses except in emergencies and drastically reducing the size of the school police force.
Suicide Prevention and Crisis Counseling Resources
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, seek professional help or call 988. The national triple-digit mental health crisis hotline will connect callers with trained mental health counselors. Or text “HOME” to 741741 in the United States and Canada to call the crisis text hotline.