A 22-year-old Cheyenne man who stormed the stage of the National Speech and Debate tournament in June in Des Moines, Iowa, prompting the evacuation of panicked participants, has been sentenced to a year of probation as part of a plea deal.
Jayden Roccaforte, a four-time national speech champion who attended Cheyenne East High School and Casper College, pleaded guilty Thursday in Iowa District Court for Polk County to one count of disorderly conduct. In exchange, prosecutors dropped two drug possession charges.
Roccaforte has been ordered to pay a $105 fine and victim damages yet to be determined, according to court records.
Neither Roccaforte, who caused a disturbance at the speech and debate tournament that emptied the EMC Expo Center in downtown Des Moines, nor family members could be immediately reached for comment Friday.
Video from the event shows Roccaforte, clad in blue shorts, a dark sleeveless shirt, and wearing a backpack, on a stage at the arena shouting to the audience during the humorous interpretation portion of the competition for middle and high school students.
Roccaforte “was acting a little weird, (and) said, ‘You all want to hear a joke?’ — in a strange voice,” one witness, who was not identified by name, told KCCI of Des Moines.
“He said, ‘You should probably leave,’” the witness continued.
Why Was He There?
There was conflicting information about why Roccaforte was at the tournament.
He was with Cheyenne East students and coaches throughout the day of the incident, according to a parent and a student who attended the event and spoke to Cowboy State Daily after the June incident on condition of anonymity, fearing retaliation.
Roccaforte, who attended West Kentucky University, went to Des Moines independently, the parent said, but traveled around Des Moines with students in a school district vehicle and accompanied students to at least one meal once there.
“He was, like, sitting right next to the East speech and debate coach,” said the parent in a phone interview. “And then to find out that not only was this kid allowed in the vehicles with our kids, he was in the vehicle and had possession of two different controlled substances — whatever they may have been.”
The student said Roccaforte wasn’t there to coach, but was there supporting the team.
“He was kind of just hanging out with people,” said the student. “There wasn’t really anyone to coach at that point; we were just going there to (perform).”
Roccaforte had accompanied the team in past years, the parent added.
No Affiliation
Laramie County School District No. 1 officials said at the time that Roccaforte was not at the tournament in connection with Cheyenne East, nor was he affiliated with the school as either an employee or volunteer.
In videos of the June incident, he's shown wearing an orange “attendee” ribbon, which indicates and school or team had approved him to join the event as an attendee.
Contestants and students wear color-coded ribbons for security reasons, according to the National Speech and Debate Association.
Roccaforte also was part of a group chat with coaches and students during the event, indicating he would have been involved in the group’s communications throughout the tournament. He was removed from the chat after the on-stage incident.
