WKU student caused panic, charged with disorderly conduct at debate competition

A Western Kentucky University student was charged last week after causing panic at a national speech and debate competition in Iowa.

Jayden Roccaforte, 22, was charged with disorderly conduct and two counts of possession of a controlled substance — one count of marijuana and one count of psychedelic mushrooms — after taking the stage at a debate competition for high school and middle school students at EMC Expo Center in Des Moines, Iowa, acting erratically, and reaching into his backpack, causing attendees to scatter.

Video of the incident circulated on social media and was posted by KCCI8, a Des Moines TV station. The video shows Roccaforte on stage during the humorous interpretation portion of the event, standing unsteadily, and asking the crowd if they want to hear a knock-knock joke.

Roccaforte then reaches into his backpack, and attendees scream and scatter.

Roccaforte was not armed when police arrested him, according to Bowling Green news station WBKO.

Hemant Mehta, 42, of Chicago, was a judge for the event’s informative speaking championship round. He was not in the building when the panic happened, but he had a student who was.

Mehta received a frantic phone call from the crying student and said he couldn’t decipher what the student was saying, but he could tell it was a “nightmare scenario.”

“As a guy who’s been in the classroom, as a parent myself… It’s the kind of phone call you dread getting,” Mehta said.

When Mehta went back inside the event center and talked to other coaches, he said everyone was in good spirits.

“Everyone seemed to be trauma-bonded,” Mehta said. “I don’t know how many people got injured or trampled on the way out… it was an emotionally scary moment, but thankfully, nothing bad happened.”

Mehta said security at the event was adamant that students had to have their ribbons to be let into the venue. In the video posted by KCCI, Roccaforte is wearing an orange ribbon, which, according to a video titled “Prepare for Nationals 2025” posted on YouTube by the National Speech and Debate Association, is given to attendees, rather than coaches or participants.

According to the Cowboy StateDaily, a newspaper in Roccaforte’s hometown of Cheyenne, Wyoming, he is a four-time national champion in speech and debate.

Ganer Newman, director of forensics (speech and debate) at WKU, said in an email to the Herald-Leader that Roccaforte was not representing WKU at the time and is no longer a part of the team.

Newman did not respond to the Herald-Leader’s questions regarding who Roccaforte was representing at the event.

Roccaforte’s name does not appear under any team photos in the WKU Forensics Team archives. Links labeled “results archives” on the team’s website from 2019-2020 to 2023-2024 lead to page not found errors.

Terrance Brown, dean of the Potter College of Arts and Letters at WKU, did not respond to a request for comment.

Roccaforte was released from jail June 20 on a $5,000 bond. His next court appearance is June 30.

This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 5:00 AM.