Despite having cerebral palsy and being confined to a wheelchair, 17-year-old Oakland high school freshman Francisco Martinez was known to fellow students as a troublemaker, and a number of them have come out in support of the security guard who was fired for that violent smackdown that was caught on video.

We already knew that 23-year-old security officer Marchell Mitchell was retaliating against Martinez after Martinez spat in his face during the May 19 incident. Mitchell had handcuffed Martinez and was pushing his wheelchair down a corridor toward a class that Martinez was allegedly trying to skip. After hitting Martinez, Mitchell can be seen dumping the boy out of his wheelchair.

The Oakland Unified School District fired Mitchell for his actions, saying that no matter what he should not have gotten physical with a student.

But a group of students came out in support of Mitchell on Friday, saying that Martinez was a "known troublemaker" and that he provoked the attack. They were chanting "Free Mitch," as CBS reports.

The school district has said that Mitchell will not be coming back. He's been charged with child abuse and will appear in court for a pretrial hearing on June 16.

Watch the video again, if you like, below.

[CBS 5]