San Mateo County sheriff removal hearing begins

Under-oath testimony from key witnesses is the final step adopted by the Board of Supervisors after voters approved Measure A in March, which granted the governing body the authority to remove an elected sheriff for just cause. The board will then vote whether to remove the first elected sheriff from office in the state.

The attorneys representing the county, from the Keker, Van Ness & Peters law firm, gave their opening remarks, accusing Corpus of four key things: maintaining a close personal relationship that caused conflicts of interest, retaliation against perceived disloyalty, obstruction of investigations, and neglect of duty, often influenced by favoritism or disfavor.

“These are all familiar human dynamics, they are part of what makes us human,” county attorney Jan Little said. “When it comes to a sheriff, any of these constitute cause for removal from office.”

Little affirmed this hearing is “not about county budget challenges,” the Board of Supervisors’ authority, or County Executive Michael Callagy — who has been accused by Corpus as an overarching authority in the county. Corpus previously requested an investigation into Callagy, which found him not guilty of any misconduct. Callagy filed a lawsuit against Corpus for false statements in March.

Corpus is accused of 18 violations of the San Mateo County charter, including violating the law relating to the sheriff’s duties, neglect of those duties and obstruction of investigations.

The sheriff sat in court Monday among her legal team — who referred to Corpus as a “petite Latina” and argued that the dissatisfaction with her administration is because of disputes about overtime pay and her efforts to “change the culture.”

“This case is about misconduct and abuse of power, but not hers,” Corpus’ attorney Chris Ulrich said.

Ulrich alleged Callagy has “spent years consolidating control” in the county, exerting influence over its various departments including the Sheriff’s Office. His overreach in the Sheriff’s Office, Ulrich claimed, emboldened the deputies’ union to fight for more overtime benefits with minimal oversight.

“The [Deputy Sheriff’s Association] now also wields enormous power,” Ulrich said. “It wasn’t always that way.”

Jim Hartnett, Callagy’s attorney, described the comments made by Ulrich as knowingly false.

“The statements are shameful, false and it’s an attempt to misdirect from the wrongful conduct of the sheriff and Victor Aenlle,” Hartnett said.

The deputies union, along with the Organization of the Sheriff’s Sergeants, denied the accusations made by Corpus’ attorney.

“Sheriff Corpus’ claim that the allegations are about double overtime is completely false,” the unions’ statement read. “The allegations are about her being a racist, a homophobe, and an abuser. This has nothing to do with money and everything to do with her immoral and unethical behavior.”

The conflict regarding the Sheriff’s Office and Corpus’ administration appeared early on as a battle over double overtime negotiations. The deputies wanted compensation for mandatory overtime, and Corpus was navigating a shrinking budget and a workforce crisis.

The Deputy Sheriff’s Association, and their alleged manipulation to secure unlimited double-pay overtime in December 2023, “quickly drained $17 million of the Sheriff’s Office budget in six months,” Corpus’ attorneys said.

“Power and control were the motive, money was the weapon,” Ulrich said.

While Corpus’ legal team argued the sheriff had to stand her ground against sworn personnel who pushed back on orders and demanded more money, county witnesses spoke to the disconcerting culture they had to operate within — leading to significant turnover in the Sheriff’s Office.

A focal allegation against Corpus is that she maintained a personal relationship — alleged by some to be intimate — with Aenlle.

Corpus took the stand late Monday afternoon, giving her side of the story.

When asked if she and Aenlle had a romantic relationship at any point during her campaign for sheriff and since, Corpus said no. Still, she said Aenlle was a close friend she trusted.

“You need to have people you can trust,” Corpus said on the stand. “I have to have people I can trust, who aren’t going to leak information.”

That trust made Corpus feel comfortable asking Aenlle to help with her son who has autism while they traveled.

“He has a soft spot in his heart for my son,” Corpus said.

Corpus is accused of creating positions in the office specifically for Aenlle, and requesting multiple pay increases for him.

Key witnesses placed on the stand by the county’s legal team spoke to the ongoing dynamic between the two that derailed administrative decisions and established an environment in the Sheriff’s Office that personnel were anxious to operate within.

Before Aenlle was Corpus’ executive director of administration — or self-proclaimed chief of staff — he served on her transition team, which was created by Callagy to help Corpus with her new role during the six months between the election and swearing in date.

Jeffrey Kearnan, who worked on Corpus’ transition team along with Aenlle, said he quickly noticed their close relationship and unusual professional dynamic. Kearnan is a retired sheriff’s official, and former friend and mentor of Corpus.

During the early stages of the transition team, when Kearnan would ask Corpus a question, Aenlle often answered on her behalf, he said. He said he was not able to speak with Corpus alone, that she often was with Aenlle, and he had concerns of Aenlle’s influence over Corpus.

Corpus’ former Undersheriff Chris Hsiung — who resigned from his position in June 2024 — spoke to his own experience in law enforcement and his tenure as police chief for the Mountain View Police Department. Hsiung, who has taught classes on effective, modern law enforcement administrative practices, said Aenlle led by intimidation, rather than inspiration.

Heather Enders, Human Resources manager for the Sheriff’s Office, spoke to her experience directly reporting to Aenlle, and the requests made to find a job position for Aenlle with “a high salary range associated.”

When Aenlle’s position was in-effect abolished by the Board of Supervisors following the public release of an investigative report accusing him of abuse of power, Aenlle texted Enders about being barred from county buildings in a “threatening tone,” Enders said. Two months later, Aenlle was in the Sheriff’s Office headquarters with a concealed weapon.

Enders spoke to feeling overwhelmed in a “hostile and toxic work environment,” and has taken a leave of absence since June 24.

“I was having a really hard time showing up to the office and pretending like everything was OK,” Enders said, crying. “It was affecting me too negatively.”

The appeal hearing will continue at 9 a.m. Tuesday with Corpus on the stand for questioning.