One security officer then ordered the student, identified as freshman Francisco Martinez, to move along and either Martinez didn't comply or was slow to do so, according to Abdel-Qawi.

Martinez suffers from cerebral palsy. His delay prompted the security officer, identified as 23-year-old Marchell Mitchell, to push Martinez by his chair handles. Martinez objected by slapping the officer's hands away, Abdel-Qawi said. The incident then escalated even further, according to the letter:

In response, the security officer handcuffed the student and continued to roll him toward class. At this point, the student turned around in his wheelchair and spat in the face of the [security officer].

The security officer then struck the student several times before dumping him from his wheelchair onto the floor, at which time another security officer intervened to restrain his partner.According to a letter from Oakland High School principal Matin Abdel-Qawi to parents, a student in a wheelchair was lingering in a hallway as security officers urged them to get to class on May 19.