Week one of Sheriff Corpus removal hearing ends with timecards, politics and emotion

The removal hearing for San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus on Friday again sank into the minutiae of payroll codes overtime logs and timekeeping spreadsheets details both sides insist remain major even though the county District Attorney previously determined the timecard issues to be clerical errors not fraud The backdrop for the situation against Corpus is the Cordell description issued in November by retired Judge LaDoris Cordell The county-commissioned -page investigative review of the San Mateo County Sheriff s Office detailed assertions of retaliation workplace misconduct bullying and proposes that Corpus sought to secure a high salary for her former chief of staff Victor Aenlle despite questions about his qualifications County attorneys have cited the analysis as evidence that Corpus abused her authority and retaliated against critics Related Articles Editorial Open up secret Sheriff Corpus removal hearings now Editorial Removal of Sheriff Corpus rife with secrecy lacks due process The account prompted the Board of Supervisors to call a special balloting in March known as Measure A which was passed by voters and approved the current removal process Under that process the board can remove the sheriff by a four-fifths vote through the end of Corpus term At the center of the timecard squabble is the November arrest of Deputy Sheriff s Association President Carlos Tapia County attorneys argue it was a retaliatory move against a vocal critic while Corpus lawyers maintain it was a legitimate probe into alleged payroll fraud The stakes are high Corpus elected in as the county s first Latina sheriff is fighting to stay in office after two sheriff s unions accused her of corruption workplace misconduct retaliation and an inappropriate relationship with Aenlle Charges include contends Corpus tried to secure Aenlle a salary between and despite what the county contends were insufficient qualifications In June the Board of Supervisors voted to remove Corpus under Measure A Corpus appealed triggering the ongoing two-week community hearing in San Mateo County Superior Court in Redwood City Retired Judge James Emerson is presiding over the hearing and after testimony concludes he will have days to issue a recommendation The board then has days to vote with a four-fifths majority required to remove the sheriff If ousted Corpus would be the first elected sheriff in California removed under this process Even after nearly a full day Thursday scrutinizing Tapia s timecards and payroll codes both sides returned Friday to the nitty-gritty Former Assistant Sheriff Matthew Fox testified that he was tasked by Corpus to review Tapia s attendance testified that he noticed discrepancies in how the union leader recorded release time hours spent on union duties that still count as work Fox commented Corpus craved to ensure Tapia wasn t improperly billing the county In opening statements the sheriff s lawyers noted that excessive overtime had cost the county and by extension taxpayers millions of dollars Fox resigned weeks later saying he did not want to be implicated in anything criminal citing the broader Cordell examination Fox often emotional during his testimony described a gang mentality within the department opposed to Corpus leadership and mentioned he resisted pressure to sign off on Tapia s arrest believing the matter had been unnecessarily escalated Before lawyers delved into the timecard issues earlier this week they called several individuals involved in the Cordell description to testify alleging they witnessed inappropriate interactions between Corpus and Aenlle Corpus however continues to deny any improper relationship with her former chief of staff Captain Brian Philip testified Friday that he had been tasked with carrying out Tapia s arrest but resigned instead calling it illegal Other officers including Sergeant Daniel Chiu also testified reviewing overtime and payroll processes and that Tapia never submitted incorrect timecards when he was his supervisor County attorneys presented documents that Tapia was under inspection for allegedly claiming to in fraudulent overtime from January to October District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe declined to file charges then effectively clearing Tapia of wrongdoing Nevertheless the arrest remains central to the county s argument that Corpus abused her authority to punish critics Corpus defense counters that Tapia s coding of overtime and double-time was intentional not clerical and that the arrest stemmed from her effort to rein in costly overtime practices including limiting deputies to no more than hours of double overtime per week a guidelines she says saved the county millions and sparked backlash against her The courtroom was only about half full Friday No cameras or video recording are allowed during the hearing and a minimal spectators chortling and giggling had to be admonished by bailiffs Corpus has denied wrongdoing framing the occurrence as a union backlash against her modification efforts in a department long dominated by sexism and resistant to change Her defense club includes attorneys from Murphy Pearson Bradley and Tom Perez a former U S labor secretary under President Barack Obama and senior White House adviser to President Joe Biden The county is represented by Keker Van Nest Peters whose attorneys spent the first week portraying Corpus as a retaliatory leader who blurred professional and personal boundaries The hearing continues next week when Corpus legal squad is expected to begin presenting her defense