The marine was later identified as 18-year-old Private First Class Josue Valdez Sarmiento, Fox News said.
The video shows two pupils fighting on the grounds of Edison High School in Stockton, California. The Marine sprints toward them and attacks them both, smashing them to the ground in his overly violent attempt to stop the student punch-up.
The 'rescuer' then held the students briefly down on the ground before getting up. One of the pupils is then picked up by another adult and the other is seen lying in painful convulsions on the ground.
The school district said in a statement, cited by the KCRA-TV broadcaster, that it was aware of the incident and is investigating the situation.
“Stockton Unified is aware of the student matter that took place on 9/11/19 [Wednesday] at Edison High School and the recording circulating on social media. We are actively investigating the situation”, the statement said.
According to the US Marine Corps, Sarmiento is a recent Edison graduate and was present to lend support to on-campus military recruiting staff but is not an authorized recruiter nor was he authorized to discipline students.
“He saw a dangerous fight break out. Upon observing that situation, he moved over and broke up the fight [...] Although, the manner in which he did [could] have been improved, we are proud of Pfc. Valdez Sarmiento for his decision to intervene", Maj. Thomas Driscoll from the US Marine Corps said, cited by KCRA-TV, adding that Sarmiento received counseling and been reassigned to other office duties.
The 209 Times media outlet - which broke the news earlier by posting the video - said the "students had been fighting for “over a minute uninterrupted in the open”, adding that the Marine's violent take-down "does more damage than the actual fight itself".
One parent told local media that the action was justified. “It could have been a little less of a tackle, but I believe in discipline. These kids were not behaving. Someone's got to stop it”, the parent said, cited by Fox News.
Meanwhile, the school and Stockton Police Department have launched an investigation into the incident.
