A 19-year-old autistic male arrested for assaulting his mother

| by Travis Uresk | June 2^nd 2026 |

Vernal, Utah (6/1/26)—According to dispatch, an adult male was seen by a third party assaulting his mother outside in the yard.

When Uintah County Deputies arrived, they spoke with a female on the porch who told them that 19-year-old Joshua James Elmer had gotten into an argument with her and his mother outside in the yard.

The female told police that Joshua grabbed his mother and began to choke her from behind. The woman stated she tried to separate them, but Joshua grabbed a hold of her left hand, spraining one of her fingers, and causing an abrasion on her hand while he was fighting her off of him.

The woman managed to separate Joshua from his mother, and then Joshua grabbed his sister and threw her to the ground.

The female told the deputy that everyone had gotten inside the house and closed and locked the door to keep Joshua out. Joshua kicked in the door, causing damage to the door frame, walked to his bedroom, and locked himself inside. The deputies were informed that Joshua has been diagnosed with autism, and she believes that he has other mental issues as well.

Deputy Mieure asked Joshua what had happened to upset him, and he stated he was told he needed to cut the lawn, but he was struggling with the high altitude and dry heat because he was not from the area. He told the deputy he got into an argument with his grandmother about the yard, and then his mother got involved, yelling at him for arguing with his grandmother.

Joshua stated that he went into a "blackout rage" because he was so upset, and that was when he hurt his mother, grandmother, and his sister. He admitted he knew he had hurt them and was ready to accept his consequences. Joshua stated that he is diagnosed with severe ADHD and Autism, and he has not been taking his medication for over a week.

Joshua was placed under arrest and was transported to Uintah County Jail, where he was booked in for Aggravated Assault (Domestic), two counts of Simple Assault (Domestic), two counts of domestic in the presence of a child, and criminal mischief.