BY AMELIA BISCARDI
Daily Post Staff Writer
A sergeant says San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus spread a rumor that he had an inappropriate relationship with an intern because his brother is a union leader who was at odds with the Corpus administration.
Sgt. Javier Acosta and Sgt. Hector Acosta said they were targeted by Corpus in two separate legal claims filed on Feb. 24. They’re seeking a combined $2.25 million in damages.
Corpus has denied the allegations and declined to comment further.
The claims look back to Aug. 15, when Corpus had a tense meeting with Hector Acosta and other union leaders about overtime.
A few hours later, Javier Acosta attended an after-hours event where a 17-year-old intern got sick from drinking alcohol, according to the claims filed by both brothers. The Post obtained the claims through a California Public Records Act request.
Javier Acosta had the other interns help the teen clean herself up before he and the interns took her home, according to his claim.
The next day, then-Assistant Sheriff Matthew Fox called Javier Acosta to a meeting and asked him about the incident with the intern. After Fox heard Javier Acosta’s side of the story, Fox said he didn’t have anything to worry about, the claim said.
But on Aug. 20, a tearful Fox called Javier Acosta back into his office, asked for his gun and badge and put him on leave, the claim said.
While Javier Acosta was on leave, he found out that Corpus and others in the office were spreading rumors that he had an inappropriate relationship with the intern, the claim said.
Essentially house arrest
The leave included a requirement he stays home Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., the claim said.
“Essentially Javier was placed on house arrest without cause,” the claim said.
On Sept. 4, Javier Acosta got a letter from the sheriff’s office that said he was under internal investigation, the claim said.
District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said his office is not investigating anything related to Javier Acosta.
Union at odds with admin
Hector Acosta is president of the sergeant’s union and says he has been “at odds with the Corpus administration repeatedly” due to his role with the union, his claim said.
Hector Acosta and deputy’s union president Carlos Tapia complained that changes had been made to the office’s overtime policy without following the “meet and confer” process that is required under the union’s collective bargaining agreement.
In response to the complaint, a meeting was held between union heads and Corpus’ administration on Aug. 15. The claim describes the meeting as “contentious” and said Corpus and Undersheriff Dan Perea left before any resolution.
This led to the unions filing a complaint with the state’s Public Employee Relations Board, or PERB, later that month.
Retaliation claim
The brothers both claim that Javier Acosta being placed on leave and the rumors being spread about him are in retaliation for Hector Acosta’s role with the union.
Javier Acosta is asking for $1.75 million in lost wages and damages. Hector Acosta is asking for $500,000 in damages.
The Acostas are both represented by attorney Charles Stone, a former Belmont mayor.
“I think this is the tip of the iceberg of what the county may end up seeing,” Stone said.
Other union head arrested
This is not the first time Corpus has faced claims of retaliation by a union leader. Corpus ordered the arrest of deputy union president Tapia on time card fraud charges on Nov. 12.
DA Wagstaffe’s office later cleared Tapia of charges.
Sheriff’s Capt. Brian Philip refused to arrest Tapia and says he was retaliated against after refusing to sign what he called an “illegal” internal affairs notice that allegedly targeted a political opponent of Corpus. Philip resigned and is now suing Corpus and the county.
Tapia’s arrest occurred on the same day the county released an independent report by retired Judge LaDoris Cordell about Corpus’ office. The report found that retaliation was one of the hallmarks of Corpus’ tenure as sheriff.
Measure A
This led to the Board of Supervisors placing Measure A on the March 3 ballot, which was approved with 84% of the vote. Measure A allows the supervisors to remove Corpus until 2028. The results will be certified on April 3.
Two other claims have been filed involving the sheriff’s office in the past month, including one by Tapia, filed on Feb. 21.
Claims are the first step to a lawsuit. The county can either accept or deny the claim. If the county denies the claim, the claimants can file a lawsuit.
Every day that Corpus remains in office (with that worm of an egomaniac, Victor Aenlle pulling the strings of power behind the scenes) presents financial peril to the County due to actions like this and the lawsuits that inevitably follow. Do not, for a minute, think that Victor did not have a hand in this. The Sheriff’s Office is being run in an amateur fashion because an amateur Deputy (the little Latin leprechaun) is largely running the show via a co-dependent Sheriff Christina Corpus. Their egos are costing taxpayers MILLIONS! Supervisor Ray Mueller was right when he said that the people of the County will be paying for Corpus’ problems for at least the next decade. We can’t be rid of Corpus – and by extension, Victor – soon enough!
Told ya! “Sheriff” Corpus is going to leave the County with at least $30 Million in claims and lawsuits.
What is the point of continuing to work as an unwanted Sheriff? She isn’t working with anyone from the county and everyone she should be working with has asked her to resign for the continued incompetent behaviors.
Saying you will never resign is just negligence and someone showing a very ugly side to being an elected official. She can just retire and be home. The fake memos of being proud to put on a uniform are disgusting to read. The opposite of what someone that should be proud looks like. There are too many of these dramatic daily, weekly, monthly lawsuits of damages she is causing. The cases are piling up and possibly further charges that she will encounter from being carelessly defiant.
She has no right to be defended or to be a county sheriff any longer. She wants a title and income and doesn’t deserve either.
Voters of San Mateo County… Corpus doesn’t care what you think or how you voted. The Board of Supervisors will eventually vote too, and Corpus will care less about that too. She ain’t leaving. Wagstaff, file charges or get a grand jury indictment against her…no big deal. She’ll care nothing about that and still won’t ever leave. She does whatever she wants and to whomever and nothing can be done about it. That’s just the way it is folks. You don’t matter, only Corpus does.
Wow. I’m shocked! More lawsuits and another death in the jail? Seems like just another week and more of the “same” for our amazing Sheriff. We are fortunate to have such a strong, collaborative leader, who gives her “all” each and everyday to the people of San Mateo County. This must all just be fake news.
I wonder where Victor will take her tonight for her birthday.
The Supervisors won’t be able to fire her. Two members of the board are leaning toward keeping her -Jackie Speier and Lisa Gauthier. A 4/5ths vote is needed to fire her. So Corpus isn’t going anywhere. The allegations don’t matter to Speier and Gauthier, they see her as a martyr to the women’s movement and a brave Latina. The revenge tour is back on track. If you’re a sheriff’s employee, you should be looking for a new job.
If Jackie Speier and Lisa G don’t vote to get this dangerous Sheriff out we will all see they them for who they are .. complicit and don’t care about public safety.
I can tell you that it not be good for their political careers and there will be a public outcry. Two more people who will have their reputation destroyed by Corpus.
How many more deaths and lawsuits are needed before these idiots wake up? When will San Mateo County wake up and stop voting for them?
And keep dreaming buddy – none of that ie true. Bye Corpus
What does matter are criminal charges
Strange how Corpu will not surrender even though 85% of the voters have said they want her removed. Can we insist that she take a mental health test because she seems delusional? She also seems to have a persecution complex despite all of her bad behavior. Normal people with healthy senses of shame step down gracefully especially when caught. Even Richard Nixon stepped down when the truth came out. Are all politicians this delusional? Please step down Corpus and get some mental health care. I am from Boston originally and in the Red Sox game where Bill Buckner let a simple ground ball roll through his legs to lose the World Series. Afterwards in Boston, when someone made a boneheaded move we said-Don’t pull a Buckner. If you move forward with all these bogus lawsuits and cost San Mateo County millions of taxpayer dollars-forevermore when a future poltician tries the same-we will say Don’t pull a Corpus!
Blah, blah, blah… nothing ever changes. The deputies union, organized labor, nearly the entire staff at the sheriffs office, most elected officials in the county, and nearly 90,000 votes in favor of Measure A want her gone, yet here we are. Governor Newsom and his AG Bonta are “out to lunch,” yesterday’s “big shot” Jackie Speier is rumored to vote in favor of Corpus staying (which is very hypocritical, given Speier’s former stance against leaders harassing subordinates in the military when she served in Congress), and our DA Steve W. is but a scared old man, who’s just collecting a government paycheck rather than holding Corpus criminally accountable for her actions. That’s the line-up! Does anyone really think things will look different at the Sheriffs Office in six months. Sadly, likely not.
How much insurance against legal judgments does the county have? I would imagine that the underwriters of the county’s legal ability policies want to get rid of Corpus as fast as possible.