By Alise Maripuu. Bay City News.
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Dozens of San Mateo County deputies and their supporters gathered outside the County Center in Redwood City on Tuesday to voice their grievances against Sheriff Christina Corpus and her chief of staff, Victor Aenlle.
The San Mateo County Deputy Sheriffs Association and the Sheriff's Sergeants' Office unions have accused Aenlle of creating a toxic work environment and interfering with protected union activities.
“Our sheriff’s office is torn by an atmosphere of unrest and retaliation, largely due to the conduct of Chief of Staff Victor Aenlle,” Carlos Tapia, president of the San Mateo County Deputy Sheriffs Association, said at the event.
The deputy sheriffs' association, or DSA, has filed multiple unfair labor practice complaints with the California Public Labor Relations Board, they said. They allege that the sheriff's department's management failed to adequately consult with the DSA before making several policy decisions.
“The situation has been building up, but I think the situation got really, really bad during a recent negotiation over the mandatory overtime policy,” Tapia said. “During this meeting and consultation process, the sheriff’s office administration walked away from the table and then instituted their own policy without confirming it with us first. They then changed the minimum and maximum staffing levels in the jails, again without consulting us.”
They also accused Aenlle of suppressing the union. In its complaint, the DSA claimed that Aenlle pressured the DSA to change its leadership during the meeting.
“At the August 13, 2024 county meeting, Aenlle attempted to force the DSA members present to remove the DSA board of directors,” according to a statement in the complaint filed.
Aenlle's conduct has contributed to an uneasy relationship between the department and DSA, they said.
“Historically, the sheriff’s department and DSA have worked together with mutual respect and collaboration to solve problems,” said Sean Currin, an attorney representing the sheriff’s deputy association. “Once this administration took power, President Tapia and DSA were repeatedly fired, which fractured the relationship. The reason for this fracture is Victor Aenlle.”
Last week, Aenlle faced a vote of “no confidence” from the DSA and the Sheriff’s Sergeants’ Office, or OSS. 96 percent of members of both unions approved the vote of “no confidence.”
“His behavior toward employees has been absolutely reprehensible, causing emotional distress among both sworn officers and civilian staff,” Tapia said. “His inappropriate and outsized influence over command staff has left many too scared to speak out.”
The unions said Corpus ignored the concerns of the DSA and OSS, and instead accused them of “political theater,” as Corpus said in a statement released last week.
“Special interests seeking to undermine my leadership have attempted to bully me into a vote of ‘no confidence’ against my Chief of Staff,” Corpus said. “No one will bully me into making personnel changes. This vote is nothing more than a political maneuver led by a few members of the administration seeking to divide this office.”
The DSA and OSS denounced Corpus' response to their complaints, which they say has created a feeling of distrust toward management at the sheriff's office.
“The sheriff had a choice,” Tapia said. “Instead of launching a thorough investigation or taking appropriate action, she chose to dismiss our concerns. She accused us of being a small, disruptive group.”
The vote has no legal authority over Aenlle or the Sheriff's Office, but it has caught the attention of the county Board of Supervisors. Supervisors David Canepa and Noelia Corzo attended Tuesday's news conference to show support for the unions and denounce Corpus' response.
“It is the responsibility of this sheriff to make sure that she listens to the employees of this organization. I cannot stand by and watch our employees be treated the way they are being treated,” Canepa said. “It is really, really important that the sheriff meets with DSA, meets with OSS, sits down and has concrete conversations. What the sheriff is doing now is not working.”
This is not the first time sheriff's deputies have complained about Corpus and Aenlle. David Wozniak, a former sheriff's deputy and president of the DSA, sued Corpus and Aenlle earlier this year for allegedly demoting him in retaliation for refusing to endorse Corpus during his campaign for sheriff.
The board said in a statement that the county has hired an outside investigator, a retired California Superior Court judge, to get to the bottom of the dispute between the Sheriff’s Office leadership and its deputies. The investigation “is separate and distinct” from the unfair labor practice complaints filed with PERB by the union, the statement said.
“This vote of no confidence is not political, but the sad reality of the state of the sheriff’s department,” Currin said. “The people of San Mateo County need to know how their brothers and sisters in blue are being mistreated.”
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