BATON ROUGE - Deputy Parish Attorney Bob Abbott is stepping down after he and his boss fell under fire over the political mayhem that surrounded the mayor's failed stormwater utility fee.

The announcement comes a little more than a week after the East Baton Rouge Metro Council took aim at Parish Attorney Andy Dotson over the mess. Dotson announced Abbott's retirement in an email to the council on Friday. 

"Councilmembers: I am writing to notify you that Deputy Parish Attorney, Bob Abbott, has announced his retirement, effective December 31, 2022. We thank Bob for his service and for the unconditional commitment and dedication he has given to the City-Parish throughout the last 25 years."

The confusion stemmed largely from a supposed non-disclosure agreement between parish leaders and the federal government related to the proposal. When it was exposed that no such NDA actually existed, Mayor Sharon Weston Broome pointed a finger at the parish attorney's office, claiming she was "misinformed."

This is a developing story.