On Monday, 26-year-old John McPoland (also identified in court and arrest records as John H. or John Henry McPoland) entered a not-guilty plea in Dubuque County District Court. A trial date of October 27 has been scheduled. 

McPoland was arrested in late July 2026. Authorities accused him of striking his roommate, 43-year-old Jesse Foutch (also referred to as Jesse E. Foutch), multiple times in the head with a baseball bat at a residence on Mount Alpine Street in Dubuque. 

According to police and court documents reported at the time of the arrest, officers responded to a report of a physical disturbance involving a baseball bat around 6:30 p.m. on July 29. McPoland left the home and was located walking nearby. He reportedly told officers he had tried to kill his roommate, citing frustration, and made additional statements about hearing his deceased father’s voice encouraging violence and about intending further harm with a bat and knife. Foutch reportedly took the bat from McPoland and told him to leave; Foutch had redness and swelling on his head. A third occupant of the home was uninjured. 

McPoland remains held without bond in the Dubuque County Jail. The charge is a felony. All individuals are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. The case continues through the court process.