Former California principal facing charges after shoving special needs student

In the video, the former principal of Wolters Elementary School, Brian Vollhardt, can be seen pushing the student in the chest, causing him to fall to the floor during breakfast time on June 7 in Fresno, California, KTVU-TV reported.

According to a statement from the Fresno Unified School District, Vollhardt and other staff members were interacting with the upset student, and the principal chose to "aggressively shove the student down" instead of "de-escalating the situation."

"The student involved is physically okay and has been provided emotional support as needed since this incident was reported," the statement continued, before addressing how the video may have been "triggering" to black people.

"The district is also not blind to the fact that seeing this footage of a white principal aggressively shoving down a young African American boy is going to be triggering and potentially traumatizing, especially for our African American community."

The incident was reported to law enforcement on June 9, as well as to Child Protective Services. Vollhardt was placed on administrative leave while the school district launched their own investigation, but he resigned before disciplinary action could be taken.

"I can tell you as a police chief in this community, I have a real problem as to the way that this child was treated," said Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderrama. "As a parent of a 9-year-old kid, which is a very similar age to the victim in this case and who also suffers from anxiety and doesn't always handle situations in the best way, it is troubling as to how somebody who is supposed to protect this child and provide support, treated them."

Authorities also told KTVU-TV that there was a previous incident between the former principal and the student, but did not provide any specifics.