The San Mateo County Independent Civilian Advisory Commission on the Sheriff’s Office met on Wednesday to address the fallout from a scathing investigative report that accuses Sheriff Christina Corpus of abuses of power, retaliation and ethical violations.
Commissioners and community members voiced strong but contrasting views, with some calling for stronger oversight and others defending Corpus.
“I am not surprised with the findings of the report,” said Commissioner James Simmons. “That’s exactly why I’m here today, because I know these things happen.”
Simmons was referring to the investigative findings in Judge LaDoris H. Cordell’s 408-report report, released last week by supervisors Noelia Corzo and Ray Mueller. The report accuses the sheriff of abuses of power, retaliation and fostering a culture of intimidation, and outlines a years-long affair between Corpus and her former Chief of Staff Victor Aenlle. It also details discriminatory behavior, conflicts of interest and ethical violations, including Aenlle’s alleged improper access to weapons, unapproved outside employment and threats against employees.
The report has also intensified calls from the public to have an oversight of the sheriff’s office.
Wednesday’s commission meeting was no exception.
After some discussion, the commission decided it was best to hear from the public before making any recommendations to the board.
The meeting featured public comments from both in-person and virtual attendees, with speakers offering their perspectives on the report’s findings.
Some echoed similar sentiments about the importance of an independent oversight committee and a permanent inspector general to keep the sheriff’s office accountable.
“I believe in zero tolerance with the sheriffs,” said Ilka Weston, a member of North County Equity and Justice Coalition.
Deacon Lauren Patton McCombs of Christ Episcopal Church called the findings in the report “extremely alarming” and suggested oversight measures could have allowed deputies to report issues earlier and potentially avoid the current controversy.
Others defended Corpus and questioned the fairness of the allegations.
James Brown, a virtual attendee, said that while oversight is important, the board is overstepping and violating precedent. He argued that the sheriff’s hiring initiatives were met with resistance from the deputies’ union and that claims in the report, particularly about a real estate deal, were factually incorrect.
“The entire report should be revisited,” he added.
There were also concerns about the methodology of the independent investigation. Aisha Alvaro stated that the investigation relied on input from individuals with similar opinions, which, according to her, undermined the credibility of its findings.
“Any finding is just as good as the sample and the sample was mostly people that were complaining,” she added.
Lydia Rivera, a county employee and staff member at the sheriff’s office, questioned the objectivity of the investigation. She said both the Board of Supervisors and the investigator never took the time to consider input from civilian employees at the sheriff’s office.
“They were biased by the complaint that the Deputy Sheriff’s Association presented,” she added.
Earlier this week, the command staff of the sheriff’s office sent an email to Corpus announcing a unanimous vote of no confidence in Corpus, Undersheriff Dan Perea and Aenlle. All five captains voted in favor of expressing their lack of confidence in the leadership during a meeting over the weekend.
According to the email also shared with this publication, the captains attempted to meet with Corpus to convey their position and formally request her resignation. But Corpus was not present in her office. Later, the captains had a conversation with Perea, reiterating their demand for both officials to step down immediately.
During the Nov.12 meeting, San Mateo County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to call on Corpus to resign. State and federal legislators have also called on the sheriff to step down. This news organization has also called on Corpus to resign.
When Corpus refused to do so, the board voted to hold a special election in March to ask voters to approve a temporary amendment to the county charter that would give the board the power to remove the sheriff.
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I suggest this organization do some of the follow up that was suggested by Sheriff Corpus’s supporters to find out if there is any merit to their claims that the investigation itself carried a bias. That might help the public trust the ultimate outcome better. I, for one, felt that the report and all subsequent reporting has sounded biased.
This situation is complicated by a pernicious and, when pressed, savage good-ole-boy camaraderie and musical-chair-like position swapping among the male principals in this county.
Oversight is necessary and not just of the Sheriff’s Office. The impunity and blatant back slapping needs to be called out, unequivocally, and addressed by an informed voting public.
I thought Corpus was a new broom. Nope. At the least, she is disappointing and she and the shady members of her crew probably need to find other employment.
An oversight panel is the right idea, an actual new broom … unless the voters in this county can’t rise to the occasion.
We have tolerated thinly veiled contempt for voters for decades. For decades. Can we take responsibility and bring on an enlightened solution?
Clevenger says it best. We who voted for Corpus had hoped we were replacing a corrupt Sheriff with one that was not. A hard thing to do in this very corrupt county. Unfortunately, all we did was replace one corruptocrat with another. It would be nice if we could have oversight on the entire county power structure, but that will never happen. Hopefully, we will have another opportunity at a non-corrupt Sheriffs candidate in the future. Corpus needs to go. It looks like her boyfriend is gone which is good as, from the sounds of Judge Cordell’s report, he was functioning as de facto Sheriff. A position he was wholly unqualified for and was not elected to. I have not finished reading Judge Cordell’s report, but based on my partially reading to this point Aenlle should be brought up on criminal charges.