A San Mateo County official has recommended that the Board of Supervisors remove Sheriff Christina Corpus from office over allegations of corruption and misconduct following a special election that granted supervisors the ability to do so.
Prior to a special meeting Tuesday, the board responded to Chief Probation Officer John Keene’s recommendation on Friday.
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Keene was selected to preside over a closed-door pre-removal conference held earlier this month. Corpus’ legal team had requested a presider with experience in the Peace Officers Bill of Rights, a law protecting police and other authorities.
If the board votes to remove her, Corpus can still appeal, which would trigger a formal removal hearing before another hearing officer. That hearing — either public or private — would result in another recommendation to the board, which would again need a four-fifths vote to finalize her removal.
The effort to unseat Corpus stems from a 400-page report released by the county last year outlining allegations of corruption, workplace misconduct, and an inappropriate relationship with her former chief of staff, Victor Aenlle. Corpus has denied the allegations and refused to step down so far.
While the contents of the Notice of Intent to Remove has not been made public at Corpus’ request, county officials said it is based on an independent investigation by the law firm Keker, Van Nest & Peters LLP. According to the county, the findings include 524 pages of documentation and 42 witness interviews, and accuse the sheriff of violating state and local laws, neglecting her duties, and obstructing an investigation.
Elected in 2022 as the county’s first female and first Latina sheriff, Corpus has been locked in an escalating standoff with county leadership. Both sides have filed lawsuits and legal claims.
Corpus previously sued the county for access to records related to the initial investigation, conducted by retired Judge LaDoris Cordell, and later commissioned a separate review led by retired Judge Burke E. Strunsky, who criticized the Cordell report’s reliance on anonymous sources and unrecorded interviews.
The sheriff’s attorneys have described the process as flawed and pledged to challenge it in court. A San Mateo County judge earlier this month denied a motion to halt the proceedings, calling it “premature” to issue a ruling.
Thomas Mazzucco, Corpus’ lead counsel, has also challenged the impartiality of the process, arguing that Supervisors Ray Mueller and Noelia Corzo — who have publicly called for Corpus’ resignation — should have recused themselves. Without their participation, the board would not have the four-fifths majority required for removal.
Mazzucco further contends the new county charter amendment, approved by voters in March to grant supervisors the authority to remove an elected sheriff through 2028, did not take effect until April 19 and should not be applied retroactively to conduct from the prior year.
The county has not responded to these arguments.
This case marks the first test of the board’s new removal powers, approved by 84% of voters in a special election that cost the county more than $4 million.
Officials estimate the full process could take up to four months.
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