Lynchburg, VA - A Lynchburg man says his autistic son was taken away from him and sent to a mental institution far from home. Officials did send the boy back the next day, but the father is struggling to find the care his son needs.

Joshua is a father's pride and joy.

Gordon Bowyer, Joshua's Dad - "And they took him from me, and they took him by force."

That after Gordon took his son to Central Virginia Community Services for treatment.

Bowyer - "It broke my heart. I mean it did."

Joshua is autistic, has the mental capacity of a child and deals with anxiety. The 16-year-old is known to act up and he did while waiting for the appointment. It helped lead to a chain of events where officers took him into custody at Lynchburg General Hospital.

Bowyer - "They went in like they were raiding a crack house. And my son screamed out 'no!’ He was real scared, you could tell by the tone of his screams. And I could hear him hollering 'daddy, daddy!'"

Community Services couldn't comment for this story. And to be fair, officers had an order from a judge telling them to take Joshua to a hospital in Staunton. But his dad thinks health workers went too far.

Bowyer - "I was in the office for him to be treated, not mistreated."

This autism expert can't comment on this specific case but understands what Joshua goes through.

Gena Barnhill, Lynchburg College (web) - "It is common to have temper tantrums because it is a way for communicating frustration that they can't verbally."

And she says there's room for more help for people like Joshua.

Barnhill - "More services, especially in the mental health area for individuals with autism is needed."

In this case it seems all Joshua needed was 24 hours in the hospital.

Bowyer - "The doctor said the best thing for him was to be back home with his father."

Who's hoping Joshua can get better and go back to school and maybe he can go back to work. For now, caring for his son is his life. Bowyer does say there are many people, like teachers and social workers, who have helped his son along the way. The director at Central Virginia Community Services can't talk about specific cases or patients, but says they do not take detention orders lightly.

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