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Former Sheriff’s Office Capt. Brian Philip has filed a suit against San Mateo County, alleging that Sheriff Christina Corpus and her former chief of staff ordered him to serve an “illegal internal affairs notice.” Philip also alleges that the pair retaliated against him because of his refusal to serve the notice.
Philip also claims that he has suffered “immense personal and professional damage” for refusing to arrest Deputy Sheriff’s Association President Carlos Tapia — choosing instead to resign from his position as captain.
Corpus is facing possible removal from office in an upcoming election that will take place on March 4. Mail-in ballots have already been sent out to San Mateo County residents.
The complaint against the county, which was filed in the San Mateo County Superior Court on Wednesday, Feb. 5, includes two charges of whistleblower retaliation, one charge of employment retaliation, one charge of discrimination based on sex, one charge of wrongful termination and one charge of failure to pay final wages in a timely manner.
Philip is represented by Zak Franklin of Santa Monica-based employment law firm Franklin Law P.C. The law firm previously represented another former Sheriff’s Office employee, Carryn Barker, who was paid $8 million by the county following a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and discrimination.
Philip had previously filed a claim against the county on Nov. 19 asking for lost wages and compensation for emotional distress due to retaliation and discrimination based on his refusal to serve the “illegal” internal affairs notice and refusal to arrest Tapia. That is a required legal step before a claimant can sue the county in court.
In the suit, Philip and his attorneys allege that he was illegally ordered to arrest Tapia on the morning of Nov. 12.
“Capt. Philip refused to make the arrest because he reasonably believed that the arrest would violate Tapia’s civil rights, including Tapia’s rights under the Peace Officer’s Bill of Rights,” the suit reads. Philip resigned from his position as captain rather than make the arrest. The suit also states that Philip immediately reported the arrest order to County Executive Officer Mike Callagy.
Tapia, who is the president of the Deputy Sheriff’s Association, was arrested just hours before the county released a 408-page independent investigative report by Judge LaDoris Cordell, which detailed allegations of retaliation, abuse of power, an affair between Corpus and her chief of Staff Victor Aenlle, illegal possession of silenced rifles and more by Corpus and her executive team. He was arrested for alleged “felony time card fraud,” and at the time, the DSA said that his arrest suggested whistleblower retaliation.
An investigation by District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe’s office found that “there was no basis to believe any violation of law had occurred, and … that deputy Tapia should not have been arrested.”
Philip also claims that he was retaliated against by Corpus for cooperating with the county-commissioned independent investigation into her office. The allegations included Corpus and her executive team expecting Philip to respond to work emails at times when he was not scheduled to work, altering meeting times to conflict with his childcare schedule, removing Philip from his “high-level spacious office” and assigning him to a “lower-level cramped office,” removing Philip from a security detail for President-elect Donald Trump and replacing him with a less-experienced officer and other similar duty downgrades.
Additionally, the suit details an instance when Philip refused to serve an internal affairs notice that he understood to be illegal due to “the notice lacking the date and time for the subject officer’s interview and (the notice) not providing the identities of the complainant or witnesses.” The suit states that Corpus and her executive team began retaliating against him immediately after he refused to serve the notice by stripping him of his prestigious duties and giving him the silent treatment.
Screenshots of texts included in the complaint allegedly show Aenlle asking a human resources manager if Philip had been employed at San Mateo County beyond the one-year probationary period. Aenlle also allegedly told the human resources manager that he intended to remove Philip, who at the time served as the internal affairs captain, “with another captain who would be willing to do Aenlle and Corpus’s bidding.”
The suit states that “the illegal actions of Sheriff Corpus and her regime have caused Capt. Philip to suffer millions of dollars in damages, including: lost wages, lost earnings and emotional distress.” The suit does not name a specific dollar amount that Philip is seeking in restitution from the county, but Franklin told this news organization that the exact damages will be determined during the course of the lawsuit.
“The key decisions and actions leading to this lawsuit came from Sheriff Corpus and Victor Aenlle,” Franklin told this news organization in an email. “That means they will be deposed in this lawsuit and they will be forced answer my questions under oath of penalty of perjury. Sheriff Corpus managed to avoid accountability for the way she manipulated and mistreated Detective Barker. She won’t be so lucky here.”
Corpus did not respond to this news organization’s request for comment.
Corpus has got to go.
Metro Voter:
We agree on something. Thank you. Yes, she needs to go.