San Mateo County sheriff sued over lost wages 

“The Sheriff’s Office has received a copy of a complaint, and in light of this, will vigorously defend itself from these false claims,” spokesperson Gretchen Spiker said in an email Friday. 

Wozniak said in the lawsuit, filed March 19, Corpus was resistant to answer questions posed by a preexisting political action committee organized by Wozniak that has been established for over a decade.  

“I asked her the same questions that every single supervisor on the board has gone through,” Wozniak said. “Instead of doing that, she wrote me a very nasty letter and said I was corrupt.”

Wozniak was serving as president of the Deputy Sheriff’s Association at this time, a union with a vested interest in the views of potential sheriffs.  According to the lawsuit, Corpus said the screening process of candidates was a “charade orchestrated by my opponent, which is little more than an extension of the existing power structure.”

Ultimately, the political action committee chose to endorse Corpus’ opponent, the incumbent Carlos Bolanos. The DSA union voted to remain neutral and did not endorse a candidate. 

Corpus won the election for sheriff in June 2022 and it was during her transition into the role she hired Victor Aenlle, who is identified as her “close friend” in the lawsuit, as an executive consultant. He was later promoted to the newly created position of executive director of administration. Both of these roles were created by Corpus. Aenlle was allegedly vocal about his dislike of Wozniak to multiple employees within the Sheriff’s Office and suggested Wozniak’s union leadership was tied to his promotion to acting sergeant in August 2022. 

Wozniak stepped aside from his role as president of the union following his promotion. During this time in a probationary period as acting sergeant, Wozniak received positive feedback from his supervisors and former Sheriff Bolanos. About a month after Corpus officially took office, Wozniak received notice he would be demoted to his previous classification as deputy sheriff. 

“I had positive reviews, no incidents, no allegations, nothing,” Wozniak said. “I remain the only acting sergeant to be demoted in the history of the Sheriff’s Office.”

In the Sheriff’s Office statement, Spiker said the department wants to emphasize that an acting position is a temporary out of class assignment with no guarantee of a promotion.

“The sheriff has consistently demonstrated her commitment to fairness, and people who display strong leadership skills and a desire for professional growth are promoted,” the statement said. 

Wozniak said he had not previously experienced the animosity he experienced from Corpus from the other sheriffs he has worked under during his tenure. 

“I had the kind of relationship with Bolanos where I could have a very spirited conversation and then go have lunch and put that behind us,” Wozniak said. “Union business was not personal, I didn’t take it personally and neither did he. That relationship, that’s not the kind of relationship Corpus had with me.” 

Wozniak retired from the Sheriff’s Office in February because he “didn’t want to work for Sheriff Corpus any longer” and is seeking lost wages he experienced due to his demotion.

“I want to be made whole,” Wozniak said. “I would like to be made whole for my final year, financially.”