Just weeks after a Los Angeles judge ruled that the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) could be held liable for the catastrophic water system failure and aging electrical infrastructure that fueled the Palisades Fire, the utility’s CEO and chief engineer stepped down, announcing her return to her home island of Puerto Rico. Mayor Karen Bass announced Wednesday that Janisse Quiñones, who oversees the city’s electric grid and water supply, will step down effective March 27 as part of what the mayor described as a “planned transition.” Critics, however, suggested the timing was more than coincidental, calling it “suspicious” and labeling her sudden departure a “dereliction of duty.”