Texas Student Who Beat Up Junior High Peer Could Face Criminal Charges, Cops Say

Prosecutors in Texas are considering criminal charges against the punk who beat the crap out of a fellow student at a junior high school ... TMZ has learned.

The attack happened Friday morning at Hardwood Junior High in Bedford, Texas and viral video shows a student repeatedly punching his peer in the head as he kneels on top of his victim ... finishing off the beatdown, as he's pulled to his feet, with a kick to the other kid's face.

Bedford Police Chief Bobby LaPenna tells TMZ ... the student who allegedly committed the assault was "detained" by police and the case will be referred to the Tarrant County Juvenile Justice Center.

We're told the Tarrant County District Attorney will review the case and make a determination on whether charges are warranted.

Cops say a Bedford PD officer working as the school resource officer responded to the fight and "took control of one student" ... with the school nurse treating the other student for injuries.

In the video, you see a cop going after the student who threw all the punches ... and you also see a teacher try to break up the fight, without putting his coffee down.