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At the close of a heated, hour and a half-long special meeting on Wednesday that reached maximum capacity on Zoom with 1,000 viewers minutes in, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to call on the resignation of Sheriff Christina Corpus, following the release of an incendiary report by Judge LaDoris Cordell. The report detailed what Cordell called abuse, lies, an affair and possible illegal activity in her office, and voted to send the report to the district attorney, the state attorney general, a San Mateo County Civil Grant Jury and other relevant local and state agencies.
During the meeting, Corpus herself gave a surprise public comment, during which she announced that she had promoted her chief of staff Victor Aenlle, with whom the report alleged she shared an inappropriate intimate personal relationship, to the role of assistant sheriff to prevent the board from taking action to remove his position. In the same statement, she said that the independent investigation into her office was “disgusting … politically motivated, one-sided and filled with lies.”
“I am the sheriff of this county,” she said. “I answer to the people of San Mateo County who elected me. I will not be bullied.”
She also said that she would not give a sworn testimony in front of the board until she had legal representation, after Supervisor Ray Mueller asked if she would give testimony in addition to her unannounced public comment.
This news organization reached out to Corpus’ office to ask about her reasons for promoting Aenlle, and the mechanics of the promotion. Her office has not responded.
The board also voted to eliminate Aenlle’s chief of staff position, a role that came with a nearly $250,000 salary that Corpus created specifically for Aenlle. This will effectively lay him off. County Executive Mike Callagy also took the step of banning Aenlle from all county property not open to the public, including areas of the Sheriff’s Office without the written consent of Callagy.
Supervisors questioned whether this last minute move by Corpus to protect Aenlle was even legal, as Aenlle is not a sworn law enforcement officer and may not even qualify for the position of assistant sheriff. The report had specifically outlined how Aenlle misrepresented his qualifications as a reserve deputy law enforcement officer. Additionally, reserve deputies are not technically sworn officers.
The board directed County Attorney John Nibbelin to look into the legality of the sheriff’s Hail Mary move and whether Aenlle legally qualifies for the position given his lack of law enforcement qualifications.
“What’s left now to the county is to go ahead and look at whether or not he actually meets the qualifications for assistant sheriff, which frankly is in doubt,” said Mueller at a press conference following the board meeting.
Supervisor Noelia Corzo said that from her perspective, the board’s action eliminated his position and will result in his removal from employment with the county.
“I don’t believe he’s qualified to be an assistant sheriff,” she said. “In my view, he’s no longer employed by the Sheriff’s Office and he has been barred from the premises.”
If Aenlle violates the order to enter non-public areas of county facilities, local law enforcement will be contacted and a report forwarded to the District Attorney’s Office, County spokesperson Michelle Durand told this news organization on Thursday.
Nibbelin said during the meeting that he had “some questions” about whether the impromptu promotion was legal. If Aenlle is legally allowed to hold the position he was promoted to, it is unclear what would happen next. This news organization has reached out to the county for clarification. If he is not legally allowed to hold the position, he is effectively laid off because the county eliminated the chief of staff position.
The investigation and 408-page report by Cordell that set these actions in motion found that Corpus and her executive team, particularly Aenlle, abused their power and retaliated against employees. The report also detailed a multi-year affair between Corpus and Aenlle and said that she had hired him and given him promotions and raises despite the conflict of interest.
The report’s findings against Aenlle were many. They included: that Aenlle had not met the Sheriff’s Office’s basic volunteer duty requirements for a Level 1 reserve deputy (which he claimed to be), that he improperly possessed a suppressed (silenced) rifle and that he illegally and improperly wore a badge that resembled the badges of sworn law enforcement officers. The investigation also states that he had unapproved outside employment that led to conflicts of interest and that he abused his power, intimidated employees and retaliated against them for perceived disloyalty.
Will Corpus be removed from office?
One of the questions that was the focus of the meeting was “how can the board remove Corpus from her position?” Since she is an elected official, the board currently does not have the legal authority to remove her outright.
In addition to calling for her resignation, the board is attempting to create a route to have her removed from her position as sheriff. The board directed staff to prepare an ordinance that would enact a county charter amendment to a vote by the general public. If San Mateo County voters pass a charter amendment at a special election in 2025, it would give the board the authority to remove the sheriff and other elected officials if certain conditions are met, such as if there is proof of criminal activity or corruption.
There are four routes through which Corpus could vacate, or be forced to vacate, the position:
- She could resign
- She could be recalled via a ballot initiative put on the ballot by San Mateo County citizens
- The San Mateo County Civil Grand Jury could find Corpus to be guilty of the criminal offenses alleged in the report and opt to remove her from her position
- The voters of San Mateo County could pass a charter amendment via ballot initiative that would give the Board of Supervisors the authority to remove her
Barring the possibility of resignation, all of these routes for removal would take a long time. The earliest a recall vote or ballot initiative to amend the county charter could be voted on by county residents would be in March 2025. However, to get either of those on the ballot by March, a recall campaign or the supervisors would have to get it on the ballot by early December.
If the December deadline is missed, the next time anything could be put to a vote is in November 2025.
“If the citizens of San Mateo County want to go ahead and organize a recall effort, if they feel so compelled, I support them in that effort,” said Mueller at the press conference following the board meeting. “But I have an obligation as supervisor … in the current circumstances, to pursue a charter (amendment).”
Nibbelin said that the process for a civil grand jury to remove Corpus would be similarly lengthy, as it would operate much like a standard criminal trial with a long fact-finding period.
“I know there are many of you who may want the sheriff to leave tomorrow, but I want you to understand, it’s a little bit of a longer process,” said David Canepa, vice president of the Board of Supervisors.
‘I know there are many of you who may want the sheriff to leave tomorrow, but I want you to understand, it’s a little bit of a longer process.’
supervisor dave canepa
At a press conference on Tuesday evening, Nov. 12, following the public release of the report, Corpus said that she would not resign, even if the board called for her to do so.
“I respect the people of this county too much to walk away when there is a righteous fight underway,” she said.
At Wednesday’s meeting, supervisors encouraged the public to read the report to understand the amount of evidence and testimony Cordell considered to reach her recommendation that “nothing short of new leadership” can save “this organization that is in turmoil, and its personnel demoralized.”
Public response
Dozens of members of the public spoke at the meeting, with many calling for Corpus to resign or be ousted by the board. Many advocated for the creation of a permanent inspector general position to provide ongoing independent oversight of the Sheriff’s Office. Fixin’ San Mateo County, an organization dedicated to oversight of law enforcement in the county, has advocated for an inspector general since its inception in 2022.
“We ask you to appoint a permanent inspector general to restore and maintain public trust in law enforcement,” said Jim Lawrence, president of Fixin’ San Mateo County.
However, several speakers, especially those from the North Fair Oaks community, defended Corpus and praised her leadership and actions to improve the unincorporated area.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story attributed a quote from Dave Canepa to someone else. It has been corrected.
I am aware that Sheriff Corpus has done some terrible things and probably belongs in jail yada yada. But this is objectively hilarious; at least she’s corrupt with a flair!