BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer
San Mateo County has released records that show how two retired judges who investigated and tried former Sheriff Christina Corpus for relinquishing control of the sheriff’s office to her alleged lover.
The county provided copies of its contracts, timesheets and invoices with retired Judge LaDoris Cordell and retired Judge James Emerson, who cost a combined $373,963.
Their work is just a fraction of the financial fallout from the Corpus saga. A special election to remove her cost $4.4 million, and the county is still spending money on attorneys fighting lawsuits from Corpus and employees she allegedly retaliated against.
The Post has been requesting information related to the cost of Corpus’ ousting, and is just beginning to get some of the numbers.
In one of her lawsuits, Corpus is asking for the county to pay $209,392 for her attorneys who sued the county to get records related to Cordell’s contract.
Cordell — a former Palo Alto councilwoman and San Jose police auditor — wrote the initial report that kicked off the removal process. She spent 251 hours doing research, interviewing witnesses, transcribing notes and writing a report between July 13 and Nov. 8, 2024, according to a timesheet.
At $750 per hour, Cordell’s 408-page report cost the county $188,763.
Call to FBI Special Agent
Most of the people interviewed by Cordell were redacted from her timesheet, except for Assistant Sheriff Ryan Monaghan, Undersheriff Chris Hsiung, County Executive Mike Callagy and a 15-minute call with FBI Special Agent Katy Taylor.
The FBI looked into the sheriff’s $35,688 monthly lease at 686 Broadway, Callagy said in an email at the time. The building was supposed to become a substation and daycare center but largely sat empty.
Cordell spent two hours and 15 minutes interviewing Victor Aenlle, a realtor who was promoted to executive director of administration — the highest-ranking civilian position in the sheriff’s office. Corpus created the position.
Aenlle allegedly berated employees, made captains report to him directly and inserted himself into investigations.
A ‘unique and intolerable problem’
“Victor is a unique and intolerable problem … His behavior and actions are actively hurting this agency,” the deputies’ and sergeants’ unions said in a September 2024 letter.
Cordell found that Corpus and Aenlle had an “intimate relationship” — he bought her $1,200 Louboutin boots and $11,000 diamond earring, took her to his coastside ranch and flew with her and her children to Maui.
Corpus violated conflict-of-interest rules when she hired Aenlle and repeatedly recommended pay raises for him, Cordell said.
She relinquished control
“This relationship has led Sheriff Corpus to relinquish control of the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office to Aenlle, someone who has far more experience as a Coldwell Banker associate real estate broker than he has in law enforcement,” Cordell wrote in her report.
The Board of Supervisors used Cordell’s report to justify a special election in March 2025 that gave them the power to remove the sheriff. Supervisors signed a $125,000 contract Emerson on July 9, 2025, to oversee a 10-day removal hearing in August, with testimony from Corpus, disgruntled employees and county officials at the San Mateo County Hall of Justice in Redwood City.
Emerson was a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge for 20 years and now works as a mediator for ADR Services. He also cost $750 an hour. He was reimbursed $4,455 for flights, Ubers to and from the airport, a car rental, meals and a 13-night stay at an Airbnb in San Carlos, invoices show.
“I’m concerned we may run out of funds,” Assistant County Executive Iliana Rodriguez said in an email on Aug. 11.
Emerson had the fish special from Pranzi in downtown San Carlos on Aug. 18 and gnocchi and affogato from Vino Santo Bistro in downtown Redwood City on Aug. 22, receipts show.
Emerson went back to Pranzi on Aug. 29 to have the fish special again and try their affogato. He also had a watermelon margarita but didn’t ask the county to reimburse the drink, receipts show.
Judge recommended firing Corpus
Emerson wrote his 42-page report from Sept. 18 to Oct. 3, invoices show. He released the report on Oct. 6 that recommended firing Corpus.
Corpus used her position to arrest Deputy Carlos Tapia for criticizing her in his role as union president, Emerson said. She also transferred Capt. Brian Philip for refusing to arrest Tapia, who was cleared of any crime, Emerson said.
Emerson ended up billing the county $185,200.
The Post obtained Emerson’s invoices and Cordell’s timesheet using the California Public Records Act.
Supervisors voted to fire Corpus on Oct. 16. She will continue getting a $327,031 annual pension and $75,307 in medical benefits.
The county also paid the Hanson Bridgett law firm $8,485 to create the removal process, according to the county’s Open Checkbook website.
The county hasn’t released its invoices with two attorneys: Christina Ro-Connolly from Oppenheimer Investigations Group and Jan Little from Keker, Van Nest & Peters. Little represented the county at Emerson’s hearing. Ro-Connolly investigated Corpus’s complaint that Callagy asked her to tell him who she was dating. Ro-Connolly cleared Callagy of bullying or retaliation in May 2025.
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