Sheriff Christina Corpus files $10 million claim against San Mateo County, slams ‘old boys ring’

SAN MATEO, Calif. (KGO) — “Unfortunately, some still believe that law enforcement is a white man’s world,” strong words from sheriff’s attorney Christina Corpus, who filed a $10 million lawsuit on behalf of the sheriff against the county from San Mateo.

Filing a claim is the first step toward going to trial. The sheriff and his attorney announced a press conference for this afternoon, but canceled it overnight. It looks like they’re still building their case, but we heard from both of them on Monday.

Brad Gage, Corpus Sheriff’s attorney, told the I-Team, “The Peace Officers Bill of Rights protects every peace officer, including the sheriff. »

Gage is a Los Angeles-based civil rights attorney who filed a $10 million lawsuit accusing the county of “discriminating, harassing and defaming a dedicated public servant because the defendants do not want a woman or a Latinx at the head of their sheriff”. Department,” Gage said, “She is treated differently than other employees who are male and non-Hispanic, especially when her individual records are leaked to the media and the public treats her differently than others.”

The county has 45 days to respond to the complaint; if they don’t or deny it, Gage says a lawsuit is pending. The complaint cites several I-Team reports that raised questions about an audit of the sheriff’s office conducted by retired Judge LaDoris Cordell. She allowed all witnesses to remain anonymous, did not require them to testify under oath, and made several significant factual errors.

TIMELINE: Investigation of San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus

“We want the names of the witnesses,” Gage said. “We want the full report. It’s a fairness issue.”

Judge Cordell also omitted from the final report 29 pages of the transcript of the interview with Corpus’s chief of staff, Victor Aenlle, including a section in which he provided his most direct defense against allegations of misconduct. The I-Team obtained a recording of the entire interview, including this section not included in Cordell’s report.

Victor Aenlle told Judge Cordell: “And just for the record, ma’am, I guess I want to make sure this is not misunderstood. I have never been in any capacity or on my own and I have never benefited from any agreement or represented myself as a broker or agent in any manner.

Sheriff Corpus declined our request for an interview Monday. You will recall that the county offered him $1 million plus four years of medical care to resign. It’s clear she’s not going anywhere, a defiance she showed during her first interview about this scandal in November.

Dan Noyès: “Do you want to resign?
Sheriff’s Corpus: “I won’t. I’m resolute, I worked really hard to get here. I know what I did. I can hold my head high.”

EXCLUSIVE: San Mateo Co. sheriff says he’s ‘disgusted’ and won’t resign despite accusations

The complaint also criticizes the supervisors for calling a special election to remove Sheriff Corpus. No comment from County Counsel, County Executive or supervisors involved. Monday evening, the sheriff sent this statement:

“The people of San Mateo County elected me sheriff because I gave them my word that I would fight the status quo and bring crime under control.”

I kept my word and I have the receipts: under my watch, we have had zero homicides, 26% fewer rapes, 23% fewer burglaries, a 12% drop in petty thefts and thefts, and a drop of 38 % of goods stolen. .

Within the sheriff’s office, it’s no secret, I made things happen: I fired members of the “old guys’ network” who were doing a bad job, and I put 162 new agents on the job. in the street.

The politicians who run our government like a private club would have chosen someone else, but the people chose me instead. Now these same politicians are trying to get rid of me in a backroom deal. But I was not elected by the elites, I was elected by the people.

Doing this work is the honor of my life and I will keep my word to the voters who elected me. I love this job and am proud of what my office has accomplished over the past two years. I will not let this power get me down: I care too much about the safety of our community.

Take a look at more stories from the ABC7 News I-Team.