Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — An 18-year-old student was arrested Tuesday for allegedly assaulting an aide at a program run by the Uintah School District.
The man was booked into the Uintah County Jail for investigation of aggravated assault resulting in serious injury, damaging a jail/patrol car and criminal mischief.
On Tuesday, the student was attending the Uintah School District’s Community Employment and Placement Program. The program provides employment training and job opportunities for individuals with disabilities who are 18 to 22 years old, according to the district.
A Vernal police officer was called to Uintah Middle School “on a report of a student that had assaulted a teacher and broke out a window. Information received was that the student was running from the scene,” according to a police affidavit.
When the officer found the man, he asked the student what his name was, and “he told me that he was confused and that he hurt someone,” the affidavit states.
When asked to explain what happened, the student told the officer that he took a nap on the couch when he was supposed to be cleaning, according to the affidavit.
The student said “that they could not find him, but when they did find him they were yelling at him and that made him mad. (He) advised that he picked up a scooter and hit the teacher on the head two times and then broke out the window when he was leaving,” the affidavit states.
When asked why he hit the teacher, he told the officer “to hurt her and to get away from her. I again clarified with (him) that his intention was to hurt the teacher and he advised yes because he was mad,” the officer wrote.
The teacher was treated at a local hospital for what police believed was a broken arm.
The officer noted that the student “may be developmentally delayed and showed signs of autism.”
While talking to the officer, the student also said “when he was 17 he had a gun and was going to kill his sister and then kill himself,” according to the affidavit.
While being transported to jail, the student bit and tore five to six “chunks” of plastic from the back of the patrol car. “I asked (him) about this and he advised that he ‘was hungry,’” the officer wrote in his affidavit.
