Social media debate over unnamed appointee leads to personal, off-topic attacks
Discon, Bechac target someone in remarks but didn’t say who
MANDEVILLE — Remarks made during the City Council’s October 9th meeting by Councilman-at-Large Scott Discon and former Councilman Denis Bechac set off a wave of speculation and personal commentary online after both men criticized an unnamed individual’s social media behavior but declined to identify the person publicly. The online debate that followed quickly spiraled into personal attacks and off-topic posts, drawing in residents and city officials who had no connection to the original discussion.
During the meeting’s opening comment period, Discon said he wanted to remind anyone serving the city, whether elected or appointed, to act respectfully in public. He derided public comments he said he had seen on social media by an individual he did not identify, while implying the person is connected to the city in some way, either as an appointee or a volunteer.
Later, during the public comment period for the adoption of a resolution, former Councilman Denis Bechac delivered an extended statement criticizing what he described as a social media post that he said mocked a Mandeville family who had complained publicly about a high water bill, stemming from the recent switch by the city to a new metered rates system. Like Discon, Bechac did not identify the person either.
Information obtained by Mandeville Daily indicates that the disputed water bill to which Bechac referred was indeed accurate, noting that the property had a long history of higher-than-average usage and that the large total reflected both outdoor consumption and a one-time extended billing period during a system transition. The information said the meter had been inspected and found to be working properly and advised the homeowner to consider installing a separate irrigation meter to reduce future sewer charges.
Through his comments, Bechac implied that his unnamed individual doxed the homeowner with photos. However, the aforementioned homeowner had their property featured in online news publications in the past, and the alleged social media post used those existing, publicly available photos. Additionally, the homeowner had already reached out to local TV and printed news outlets before the alleged offending social media post had been made.
Within hours of the meeting ending, certain social media users positioning themselves as supporters of Discon or Bechac began posting about the person’s supposed identity, complete with videos and animations, including screenshots of the alleged individual. The online rhetoric quickly turned hostile, spreading into unrelated personal attacks on other city officials.
According to those who viewed the posts, the self-ascribed supporters of Discon and Bechac ended up creating posts and comments that were far more offensive than the remarks of the individual they were complaining about in the first place.
In these social media threads, several posters shifted their attention to personal criticism of others in city government. One thread about the mystery person included a sexually suggestive nickname aimed at a female city official, implying that her clothing exposed her during a public meeting. The comments from this group drew criticism from others on social media who called the posts “disrespectful” and “embarrassing to the city.”
Mandeville Daily redacted that nickname to protect the identify of the female official.
The posts were eventually removed by the social media platform itself for violating community guidelines, according to sources familiar with the situation.
Mandeville Daily reached out multiple times to both Discon and Bechac for comment and to clarify who they were targeting in their remarks. Neither responded.
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