AFTER COMPLETION of a months-long investigation into complaints made by embattled San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus against a top county official, the county Board of Supervisors on Thursday voted to release the full report.
In September, Corpus wrote a letter to the board urging an independent investigation into her claims that County Executive Mike Callagy allegedly abused his power, made inappropriate comments toward her, and treated her as a subordinate.
“I write to you with an immediate call to action to address the retaliation, abuse of power, sexual discrimination, and bullying tactics of your employee, County Executive Mike Callagy,” she wrote in the letter.
The board complied with her request, retaining an outside law firm back in January to evaluate Corpus’ claims.
The independent investigation comes at a time when tension in the county remains high as the Board of Supervisors prepares to initiate removal proceedings against Corpus.
Last November, the findings of a 400-page investigation into alleged misconduct of Corpus were released, conducted by retired judge LaDoris Cordell.
The report, which sustained allegations of retaliation and intimidation within Corpus’ leadership, prompted calls for her resignation by the Board of Supervisors, local city councils and elected officials in the region.
After Corpus refused to step down, the board resorted to holding a special election in March where voters overwhelmingly approved Measure A, adding a charter amendment that grants the board temporary power to remove the sheriff for causes such as flagrant neglect of duties or violation of law related to a sheriff’s duties.
During a special meeting Thursday, the board agreed to publicly make available the complete, 166-page report conducted by Oppenheimer Investigations Group, a team of attorneys that specializes in workplace investigations.
Report clears Callagy entirely
The findings determined that all of Corpus’ allegations were unsubstantiated, therefore clearing Callagy of the accusations, according to the report.
“The report of investigation is now complete,” said County Attorney John Nibbelin at the special meeting. “The investigator did not substantiate any allegations that constitute misconduct on the part of Mr. Callagy.”
The independent investigation involved interviews with about a dozen witnesses, including Corpus’ former undersheriff, officials in the county Human Resources Department, and deputy sheriff’s union president Carlos Tapia.
Attorney Christina Ro-Connolly of Oppenheimer Investigations Group led the investigation.
As part of the investigation, Corpus and former chief of staff Victor Aenlle were also asked to be interviewed. Aenlle is named throughout the Cordell report and was accused of having a romantic relationship with Corpus.
On the day of her interview, which was scheduled to take place the day before the March special election for Measure A, Corpus’ attorney Thomas Mazzucco ended the interview before it began. He cited stress related to the special election and asked to reschedule the interview, according to the report.
Instead, Corpus ended up providing written responses to Ro-Connolly’s questions.
One of Corpus’ accusations was that during a meeting after she was elected, Callagy “demanded that I disclose who I was dating within the county,” Corpus said in her written response to Ro-Connolly.
“It was inappropriate for the appointed county executive to question the elected sheriff about the sheriff’s romantic life,” Corpus wrote. “His actions and comments have made me not only feel offended, but I also felt belittled, harassed, embarrassed, shocked, demoralized, unsafe, discriminated, disenfranchised, humiliated.”
Callagy described this allegation to Ro-Connolly as “ludicrous” and a “lie,” but he said he did bring up with her concerns of a potential conflict of interest due to Corpus’ rumored personal relationship with Aenlle.
Several people informed Callagy that Corpus and Aenlle had previously taken a trip to Hawaii together, according to the report. Corpus confirmed to Callagy that her and Aenlle indeed travelled to Hawaii together as friends, Callagy said in the report.
The report concluded that a “preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that Callagy directed Corpus to inform him of when and who she dated within the County.”
She also claimed that Callagy made unilateral decisions without Corpus’ input in negotiating overtime with sheriff’s unions and police services for cities that contract with the Sheriff’s Office.
“Mr. Callagy actively sought to dictate terms in police service agreements that fell under my jurisdiction,” Corpus wrote. “His interference was designed to undermine my authority and disrupt negotiations, something he never did with previous male sheriffs.”
However, several witnesses interviewed stated that Corpus was indeed involved in union discussions to allow double overtime.
The report included several emails in which Corpus was copied regarding negotiations for double overtime and that “Callagy was deferential to Corpus,” according to the report’s conclusions.
Callagy stated in the report that the city manager of San Carlos, Jeff Maltbie, approached him because Corpus apparently wanted to make changes to its existing contract. San Carlos is one of several cities in the county that contracts with the Sheriff’s Office to provide policing services.
Callagy told Ro-Connolly that Corpus wanted San Carlos to pay 100% of the cost of a captain position for the city, instead of the 80% in the original contract. Maltbie confirmed this and said that Callagy stepped in to help promote collaboration between Maltbie and Corpus after the two were struggling to come to a contract agreement.
Corpus also accused Callagy of trying to interfere with Corpus’ firing of former assistant sheriff Ryan Monaghan.
“His refusal to respect my authority in personnel decisions is part of a larger pattern of obstruction that compromises my ability to lead effectively,” Corpus said in her written response.
According to an email Callagy sent to Corpus, Callagy attempted to pause the termination of Monaghan out of concern that his firing could be seen as unlawful retaliation due to Monaghan’s cooperation in Cordell’s investigation.
“I believe that it is reasonable, on these facts, to conclude that AS Monaghan was retaliated against for his participation in Judge Cordell’s investigation into complaints regarding your department,” Callagy wrote in the email. “This would violate the law, including the county’s own Ordinance Code, and could open up the county to significant litigation risk.”
‘The matter is now closed’
Corpus, who identifies as Latina, primarily attributed gender and racial discrimination as the underlying factor in Callagy’s alleged behavior toward her.
“Mr. Callagy’s treatment of me is steeped in bias,” Corpus wrote. “His weaponization of county resources to control and intimidate me is reflective of the broader challenges faced by women — especially women of color — in leadership roles.”
Many witnesses stated that they did not observe or hear allegations within the county that Callagy treated Corpus any differently due to her race or gender.
For example, county human resources director Rocio Kiryczun told Ro-Connolly in an interview that as a woman of color herself, she always felt respected by Callagy. She also noted how Callagy has hired many women into executive leadership roles, including Assistant County Executive Iliana Rodriguez, who is also a woman of color.
After approving the public release of the 166-page report, the Board of Supervisors also unanimously voted to agree that Corpus’ complaint was not with merit and that the complaint is no longer relevant.
“Oppenheimer’s investigation has concluded our county executive acted fairly and responsibly regarding the sheriff’s allegations,” said Board President David Canepa in a statement. “The matter is now closed.”
Callagy’s attorney Jim Hartnett said in a statement that the investigation discredited Corpus’ claims, and that her unwillingness to provide an oral interview to Ro-Connolly indicated a lack of credibility.
Oppenheimer’s investigation has concluded our county executive acted fairly and responsibly regarding the sheriff’s allegations.
Board President David Canepa
“Even though Sheriff Corpus requested the investigation, and totally at odds with any normal process, not only did she not offer to testify under oath, but she also refused to sit for an interview and would only provide answers in writing to written questions,” Hartnett said. “Time and again in the report, the investigator concluded that the sheriff is not credible, and that she would make broad, sweeping statements without any factual support.”
Despite the report’s findings, Corpus defends her accusations against Callagy.
“I stand by my allegations and concerns regarding Mr. Callagy interfering with my ability to run the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office as the elected sheriff.
In response to the allegations, Callagy filed a $10.5 million complaint in March against Corpus and Aenlle, arguing that the accusations constitute defamation and were made with the intent to harm Callagy’s reputation.
“While Sheriff Corpus has been able to avoid being interviewed, there will come a day on which she will have to testify under oath and personally bear the consequences of her statements and conduct,” Hartnett said.
