San Mateo County voters decided on Tuesday to amend the county charter to give the Board of Supervisors the authority to fire Sheriff Christina Corpus over allegations of corruption. The saga of Sheriff Corpus dates back to 2021. Here’s a timeline.
2021
July — Then Sheriff’s Capt. Christina Corpus launches campaign against Sheriff Carlos Bolanos.
September — An employee sees Corpus and real estate agent Victor Aenlle kissing and “playing footsie” at Aenlle’s ranch house, according to an investigation by retired Judge LaDoris Cordell.
December — Aenlle allegedly buys Corpus a $1,200 pair of shoes, and a sergeant notices that Corpus came to work wearing the same clothes as the day before, according to the Cordell investigation.
2022
Jan. 27 — Corpus tells an employee that Aenlle gave her $12,000 for diamond earrings, the Cordell report states.
March 17— Corpus confirms her husband, retired Lt. John Kovach, had a confederate flag tattoo.
April 18 — The San Mateo County Democratic Party endorses Corpus.
June 7 — Corpus defeats Bolanos. Aenlle gets mad that Corpus thanked Kovach during her victory speech.
July 13 — Corpus texts a homophobic slur to an employee, according to the Cordell report. A forensic investigation would later confirm that the text was made on Corpus’ phone.
July 25 — Corpus repeats the slur, the report said.
July — Aenlle allegedly yells at an employee, “If I give you an order, it’s as if it is coming directly from the sheriff.”
Aug. 15 — Corpus repeats the slur, the report said.
August — Corpus sets up a transition team with Aenlle and two others on payroll. Corpus wouldn’t be sworn in until January 2023.
Sept. 21 — A former deputy sees Corpus and Aenlle flying together from SFO to Maui, the Cordell report said.
Oct. 21 — County Executive Mike Callagy terminates Aenlle’s contract after hearing about the Maui trip.
Dec. 10 — Corpus hires Tiburon Police Chief Ryan Monaghan as assistant sheriff. Monaghan, before he arrived in Tiburon, came up through the ranks in the San Mateo Police Department.
Dec. 20 — Corpus hires Mountain View Chief Chris Hsiung as undersheriff.
2023
Jan. 7 — Corpus is sworn in. Maycarla Sulapas, 25, of South San Francisco, dies in jail from a meth overdose.
Jan. 21 — Aenlle signs a contract to help Corpus for $92 an hour.
March 7 — Corpus hires Aenlle as a special projects coordinator for $73 an hour.
April 17 — Kovach files for divorce from Corpus.
July — Corpus hires Aenlle as her executive director of administration for $114 an hour.
Aug. 1 — Aenlle brokers a $35,688 monthly lease for a building at 686 Broadway in Redwood City with plans for a childcare center.
Oct. 20 — Peter Edward McLaughlin, 64 of Pacifica, dies in jail from previously undiagnosed brain cancer.
Oct. 21 — Ronald Simmons, 34, of San Bruno, dies in jail from suicide.
Dec. 12 — The Board of Supervisors establish the Independent Civilian Advisory Commission on the Sheriff’s Office.
2024
Jan. 14 — Anthony Harding, 23, of Oakland, dies in the jail’s drug detox unit.
March 12 — Corpus orders Hsiung to ask HR to give Aenlle a raise. The request is denied.
March 15 — Hunter Bergner, 46, of Redwood City, dies in jail from suicide.
March 18 — Reina Canale resigns as executive director of the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Activities League.
March 19 — Deputy David Wozniak sues Corpus and Aenlle for allegedly demoting him because the deputy’s union political committee endorsed Bolanos when Wozniak was union president.
April 22 — Aenlle asks HR for a raise and is denied.
June 3 — Corpus opens new headquarters at 330 Bradford St. in Redwood City.
June 20 — Detective Carryn Barker settles a sexual harassment lawsuit with the county for $8 million. The county settles the case just before a judge was planning to rule if Corpus would have to sit for a deposition.
June 21 — Hsiung quits as undersheriff.
July 1 — Corpus hires San Francisco Deputy Chief Dan Perea as undersheriff.
July 10 — Supervisors hire retired Judge LaDoris Cordell to investigate Corpus.
July 11 — A captain tells Monaghan to directly report to Aenlle.
Aug. 30 — The deputy’s union and sergeant’s union file a complaint with the state Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) about Corpus mandating overtime without discussing it with the union in advance.
Sept. 12 — The unions vote to declare no confidence in Aenlle.
Sept. 14 — Aenlle demands a picture with President Donald Trump in Woodside.
Sept. 17 — Monaghan tells Corpus he spoke with Cordell.
Sept 20. — Corpus fires Monaghan.
Sept. 21 — Callagy keeps Monaghan on payroll, though he isn’t working in the sheriff’s office. Callagy kept Monaghan in order to prevent a wrongful termination lawsuit.
Sept. 24 — Corpus promotes then-captain Matthew Fox to assistant sheriff.
Sept. 25 — Cordell interviews Aenlle.
Sept. 27 — Callagy sends an FBI agent a copy of the 686 Broadway lease.
Oct. 2 — Cordell emails Corpus seeking a time for an interview. Corpus never follows up.
Nov. 5 — Callagy halts plans for a child care center at 686 Broadway because the sheriff’s reserves fell from $33 million to $3 million.
Nov. 12 — Supervisors announce Cordell’s report is complete. Corpus orders Capt. Brian Philip to arrest Deputy Carlos Tapia for time card fraud. Philip quits. Tapia is arrested. Supervisors release the Cordell report. Corpus denies the allegations.
Nov. 13 — Supervisors eliminate Aenlle’s position and call for Corpus to resign. Corpus says she is promoting Aenlle to assistant sheriff.
Nov. 14 — Fox resigns as assistant sheriff.
Nov. 18 — All five captains declare no confidence in Corpus, Perea and Aenlle.
Nov. 19 — Supervisors place Measure A on the ballot.
Nov. 25 — San Carlos City Council declares no confidence in Corpus.
Nov. 29 — The family of Hunter Bergner sues Corpus and the county over his death in custody on March 15, 2024.
Dec. 2 — A male inmate allegedly rapes a female inmate in a courthouse elevator while a deputy’s back is turned.
Dec. 13 — Judges Stephanie Garratt and Elizabeth Lee tell Corpus that a murder suspect wandered around the courthouse in plain clothing without shackles.
Dec. 16 — District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe throws out the case against Tapia.
Dec. 17 — Wagstaffe declines to file charges for the alleged elevator rape.
Dec. 3 — Corpus files a $10 million claim against the county.
2025
Jan. 10 — Corpus files a lawsuit to stop the election.
Jan. 14 — The San Mateo County Democratic Party endorses Measure A.
Jan. 28 – Millbrae City Council declares no confidence in Corpus.
Feb. 5 — Brian Philip, who quit instead of obey Corpus’ orders to arrest Tapia, sues the county.
Feb. 6 — San Mateo City Council declares no confidence in Corpus.
Feb. 10 — Redwood City Council endorses Measure A.
Feb. 11 — Belmont City Council endorses Measure A.
Feb. 12 – South San Francisco City Council endorses Measure A.
Feb. 25 — Woodside Town Council endorses Measure A.
Feb. 26 — Judge Nicole Healy rejects Corpus’ lawsuit to stop the election.
March 4 — Voters approve Measure A, which gives the Board of Supervisors authority to fire Corpus. The vote was 86% in favor. The 90,466 people who voted to approve Measure A is larger than the 82,622 people who voted to elect her in 2022.
You forgot to include the Coastside Captain quitting, that Aenlle also brokered the lease of 235 Main St. in Half Moon Bay, the 689 page Meliora report, the $74k conference table, #SilencerRifleGate, SAL Board Treasurer Kat Petrick quitting SAL’s Board, and Aenlle’s Coastside property (the Contreras farm) being yellow tagged for uninhabitable conditions by the Farmworker Housing Task Force.
Fairly accurate overview. Notably absent is the following additional key information from Detective Barker’s legal counsel, as alleged in Brian Phillip’s lawsuit. It relates to failures to report sexual harassment allegations and deliberate election interference, among other patterns of behavior by Corpus and her cronies. Somewhere between 2021 and 2022, beginning pre-election:
“Detective Barker confided in Sheriff Corpus (then Captain Corpus), telling Corpus about the harassment and sexual assault. While Corpus was legally required to report this harassment to others at San Mateo County, she failed to report the harassment or the assault, and she failed to do anything about it. Instead of helping Detective Barker, Corpus attempted to manipulate Deputy Barker into filing a lawsuit against San Mateo County because Corpus hoped the lawsuit would embarrass then Sheriff Carlos Bolanos and help Corpus defeat Sheriff Bolanos in the upcoming election. When Detective Barker expressed hesitancy to pursue a lawsuit, Corpus appealed to Detective Barker’s sense of duty, telling Detective Barker that a lawsuit was the only way that Detective Barker could help other women at San Mateo County. Corpus also promised Detective Barker that she would voluntarily testify in Detective Barker’s lawsuit and support her throughout the litigation. Inspired by someone whom she considered a mentor, Detective Barker filed the lawsuit Corpus encouraged her to file. However, Corpus betrayed Detective Barker soon after Corpus became Sheriff and retaliated against Detective Barker by: (i) refusing to communicate with Detective Barker; (ii) refusing to testify in Detective Barker’s lawsuit; (iii) attempting to reassign Detective Barker to less desirable work assignments; (iv) sharing Detective Barker’s private information with San Mateo County so it could attempt to use it against Detective Barker in her lawsuit; and (v) falsely accusing Detective Barker of timecard fraud. Then—after Detective Barker won $8,000,000.00 in her lawsuit and representatives of San Mateo County apologized to Detective Barker Sheriff Corpus made sexist and belittling comments about Detective Barker’s body and breasts to others in San Mateo County’s leadership. Aenlle also made derogatory comments about Detective Barker.”
Corpus couldn’t care less. She’s disregarded her entire agency, most civic bodies and elected officials and the people of San Mateo County who voted for Measure A. She ain’t leaving! She is just cruising to the next payday and then another and another. Even if there were to be a full recall election, she would file some bogus lawsuit and drag her tenure out even further. Maybe a “real” prosecutor (local, state or Federal) with some backbone will investigate AND file a criminal case against her. Leaving in handcuffs is the only way she will ever be gone. Wagstaff where are you? The Tapia family, entire Sheriffs office and the voters of San Mateo County want to know!
This is all a good read, but why have no criminal charges been filed. We should be asking why this vote happened instead of the normal course of action which would be criminal charges. If the acts she committed were not criminal acts then that should be made clear in this detailed article. Is a retired judges investigation, the new court of law. Something does not seem right on both sides.
Measure A did seem like kind of a roundabout approach to the problem, and I’m still not 100% clear on the issues. Aenlle sounds like a putz, but Corpus having an affair with him isn’t a crime. I voted in favor of the measure simply because she seems to have lost everyone’s confidence.Too bad, because her win in the first place was a feel-good moment!
We didn’t vote for Aenlle a realtor to run the Sheriff office and have her kill every relationship in the county
We didn’t vote for someone to pretend to be one person and then turn into a corrupt person
She paid a friend 250k thats a crime its against policy it’s nepotism
She arrested an employee because of aenlle thats sick and illegal
She isn’t doing her job that’s negligence
Sit in your own bubble but 800 employees are impacted by this incompetent sheriff
Because criminal charge in 2025 take months and years
More to come ridiculous
I can tell you with great confidence after dealing with Steve Wagstaffe and the San Mateo County district attorney‘s office, That he is an absolute meticulous and professional individual. Steve works harder than anyone else in the office.
If/when charges are warranted and Filed, you can bet that they will stick and she will be convicted. Wagstaffe Will keep quiet on the whole thing until his investigation is completed and charges are ready to be filed.
I have no inside information about why DA Wagstaffe hasn’t filed charges, but my bet is that he wants to wait until her hearing before the supervisors to see if he can catch her saying anything incriminating. He’s got plenty of time to file. He tends to take his time to make sure he’s got it right. Take a look at the Ron Galatolo case.
What about the votes of no confidence to Aenlle in August and the votes of no confidence for corpus aenlle and parea in November – followed by legislative and congress asking corpus to resign and the 7 city council voting jo confidence or supporting measure a
The sad gross negligent truth is Corpus doesycare about anyone except her boytoy Aenlle- she could care less about the 90k people that want her gone and the other people that want a recall