The other side of the story — Sheriff chief of staff Aenlle gives his side of unions’ allegations

BY DAVE PRICE
Daily Post Editor

Victor Aenlle, the chief of staff for San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus, said in an interview that he’s the target of a “witch hunt” by the unions representing deputies and sergeants.

Previously, Aenlle has declined to comment to the Post about allegations by the unions. But on Monday he agreed to an interview to give his side of the story. He flatly denied claims that he has had an affair with the sheriff.

And he said he wouldn’t have a problem if the county were to release a report former judge LaDoris Cordell is writing about him.

Aenlle said he and the sheriff are trying to change the culture of the sheriff’s office that will benefit their employees and bring more equity to the public. But he said the unions have targeted him in response. And he isn’t being treated fairly by the county administration either.

“It’s a witch hunt,” he said. And he said it’s political.

Credentials

He said the unions have sought to undermine him by questioning his credentials. Before he was hired by Corpus, he had served as a volunteer reserve deputy for 16 years. As a reservist, he is a “sworn” officer — an important distinction in law enforcement — and holds a certification with the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, or POST.

He said he wanted to become a full-time deputy and went through the Field Training Officer program.

“I was already patrolling by myself. I was already covering shifts from when deputies were sick,” Aenlle said. “I was already taking my own cases. I basically I had already passed a full time FTO.”

Aenlle said he has documentation that shows he passed the FTO program. But still he wasn’t hired as a full-time deputy. “It was definitely politically motivated. And that (left) a little sour taste in my mouth and that’s why I never came back as full time.”

He said former sheriff Carlos Bolanos, who was undersheriff at the time under then-Sheriff Greg Munks, held him back from becoming a full-timer. Corpus defeated Bolanos in 2022.

Aenlle said he continues to serve as a sworn reserve deputy. He also is a civilian chief of staff, which he said is in alignment with the position of assistant sheriff. He points out that other large sheriff’s offices in California have top-level civilian positions, so his job isn’t unusual.

The badge
The unions have made an issue out of a badge Aenlle wears that says “Chief of Staff.” Aenlle responded, “There are civilians that have a badge. It’s just for identification.”

Aenlle responded to the criticism that he isn’t qualified because he went from reserve deputy to the top level without holding positions in between.

“I can only assume that the people who asked that repeatedly are jealous that they couldn’t do it themselves,” Aenlle said.

He said he brings value and a different perspective to the sheriff’s office. His resume shows he has a master’s in organizational leadership and a doctorate in interdisciplinary studies, both from Union Institute & University in Sacramento.

“The sheriff just puts her team together with different talents that she feels will make her successful,” he said.

‘Shameless’ allegation

Aenlle denied that he is having a romantic affair with the sheriff.

“If the sheriff was a male, you wouldn’t be asking that question,” he said. “But I’ll answer it for you. I am not.”

Aenlle said he’s been married for over 30 years.

“This is just shameless to taint (Corpus’) reputation,” Aenlle said. “And, again, if she were a man, this question would not come up.”

He pointed out that since he started as a reserve deputy, he’s known Corpus and has always worked well with her. “When it was time to campaign, she knew of my talents, of my abilities and she asked for help,” he said.

“I am sold on her vision for this department … to really change the culture and provide equity in the services we provide.”

He added, “There’s never been a sheriff that’s done more for this department, for our community, for people who are incarcerated than this sheriff right now.”

The Cordell report

The county Board of Supervisors has hired former judge LaDoris Cordell, who had previously served as police auditor in San Jose, to write a report about complaints made against Aenlle.

Aenlle indicated that the complaints didn’t go through the county’s HR department and he wasn’t informed about them before they reached Cordell. The only complaint that has reached the public is the claim, made in a union document, that Aenlle be- rated a female employee at her retirement party. He pointed out that in the written complaint, it doesn’t say he berated or screamed at her. “If I did it, I’m sure it would be in the complaint, right?” he asked.

He said he also has numerous positive emails from that employee, saying he had been a “wonderful” boss. He said that she wrote, “You’ve always been very good to me.”

He lamented, “I still respect her. I don’t know why they put her up to this.”

Separation of powers

Cordell was hired by the County Executive Mike Callagy, but it is unclear what authority Callagy has over the sheriff’s office. He halted Corpus from firing Assistant Sheriff Ryan Monaghan. But Callagy, who isn’t elected, doesn’t outrank the sheriff and can’t hire or fire a sheriff. Neither can the Board of Supervisors, according to the county charter. The sheriff is directly responsible for the voters.

“(The county executive) is not above the sheriff. He does not run this department,” Aenlle said. Cordell is expected to submit her report within days.

Aenlle said he found out about the investigation when it was brought up at a Board of Supervisors meeting. He said he hadn’t received any information about the allegations against him. However, he agreed to sit down with Cordell for more than two hours. He said the only allegation he was told about that he had “insinuated” his displeasure at an employee who supposedly wrote something against him and the sheriff.

He said an “insinuation” isn’t much of a complaint. He said the rest of the things he was asked about came from “whistleblower letters of people trying to cause harm to me and the sheriff.”

He said his critics are throwing things against a wall to see what will stick.

He said a number of employees supporting Aenlle asked to be interviewed by Cordell, but they were told there wasn’t time to interview them.

When the Post asked Aenlle if the Cordell report should be released publicly, he said “Why not?”

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