Family identifies student who fell to his death at Franklin High School in Highland Park as Xavier Amaya

HIGHLAND PARK, LOS ANGELES (KABC) — The student who fell to his death at Franklin High School in Highland Park has been identified by family members, who spoke out at an emotional vigil for the teenager.

Xavier Amaya’s family, who did not want to be identified on camera, told Eyewitness News that the 17-year-old was being bullied and expressed concerns over how he was treated in the days leading up to his death.

Amaya died Wednesday after police say he fell from the fourth floor of a campus building.

A student died at Benjamin Franklin High School in Highland Park, prompting a lockdown that lasted nearly three hours.

His parents said the school advised them to go to the hospital, even though his body was still at the school.

“The school did not communicate to the mom or to the dad – they found out under very, very bad circumstances. The mom was at the hospital thinking her son was there,” one woman said at a vigil Thursday evening.

ABC7 spoke with a student who was in class with Amaya moments before he died. She said he was hit several times by another student before he fell.

“I was like right behind them, when everything did happen. When I turned around, all I saw was the kid punching him and punching him… the other kid was throwing punches, he was just not doing anything wrong.”

ABC7 reached out to the Los Angeles Unified School District about the parent’s concerns. In a statement, a district spokesperson expressed condolences and said the Los Angeles Police Department is investigating the incident and grief counselors are available for students and staff.

The school reopened on Thursday, but some students were not ready to return.

Students returned to Franklin High School on Thursday as the investigation continues into the death of a student who fell from the fourth floor.

Meanwhile the LAPD investigation into the tragedy continues. There are surveillance cameras throughout the school, which could’ve potentially captured video of what transpired before Amaya’s death.

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