BY DAVE PRICE
Daily Post Editor
Deputies and sergeants in the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office will hold a no-confidence vote Monday (Sept. 9) on the department’s chief of staff, Victor Aenlle, who union leaders accuse of many improprieties and creating a “culture of fear.”
The boards of the Deputy Sheriff’s Association and the Organization of Sheriff’s Sergeants sent a 772-word letter to their members to explain their decision to seek the no confidence vote.
The Post emailed Aenlle to get his side of the story, and he said, “Providing a comment would be an exercise in futility.”
He also said, “For your benefit –– I did respond to the DSA/OSS letter, and I’m sure it will be leaked to you shortly.
Former Santa Clara County Judge LaDoris Cordell, who served as San Jose’s police auditor, is investigating several HR complaints, according to Supervisor David Canepa and deputies who have spoken to the Post. However it isn’t known if or when Cordell’s report will be released. She has declined comment.
The unions claim that Aenlle, who is a civilian, has been seen on numerous occasions wearing a “Chief of Staff” badge embossed with the number “1.” The unions point out that Aenlle is only a reserve deputy and that gold badges are reserved for full-fledged “sworn” deputy sheriffs.
“It appears to be an attempt to elevate himself to a position of authority that he has not earned,” the letter from the union board says.
The union says that Aenlle, though he has never been a sworn deputy, is requiring captains to report to him directly, ignoring the sheriff’s organizational chart. They say he has inserted himself into investigations.
“Victor is not a high-ranking law enforcement officer and never has been,” the letter says. “The DSA and OSS boards believe that his interference in matters outside of his civilian role is unacceptable and disrespectful to the sergeants, deputies and correctional officers.
The unions say that Aenlle is refusing to provide crime lab personnel with rain coats for assignments outdoors. “They are currently sharing one rain jacket when they are on-call,” the letter said.
While Aenlle is unable to provide raincoats to the crime lab staff, he has entered into a long-term lease for a property on Broadway in Redwood City that has been sitting empty for over a year, the letter states. The building, with a rent of $40,000 a month, was supposed to become a substation and daycare center. But Aenlle didn’t follow the county’s rules on acquisitions, the unions say.
“This oversight is believed to have cost the agency a significant amount of money, and there is still no estimated date of completion,” the letter said.
Information about the bungled lease is a tightly-kept secret in the county government. The Post filed public records requests for information about the property but was turned down.
The union boards say Aenlle’s personal behavior has been “reprehensible,” and that employees are afraid to cross him out of fear of retaliation.
“In one incident, he berated an employee during a goodbye party for her, causing her significant emotional distress and resulting in an HR complaint,” the letter said.
“Victor has, without a doubt, created a culture of fear,” the letter said.
“At a time when the sheriff’s office faces challenges that are not unique to other law enforcement agencies, Victor is a unique and intolerable problem for this agency. His behavior and actions are actively hurting this agency,” the letter said.
Concerns about Aenlle’s qualifications — a realtor and reserve deputy being elevated to the sheriff’s three-member command staff — have been raised since he was appointed by Sheriff Christina Corpus in 2023. Typically command staff members have decades of experience in all aspects of law enforcement.
As the Post first reported on Aug. 23, the unions have filed a complaint with the California Public Employment Relations Board. The board will consider the complaint, possibly hold a trial, and has the authority to order the sheriff’s office to pay financial penalties.
The unions are also upset with Corpus for imposing a new policy that increases the amount of overtime her officers must work. The policy was prompted by a severe staffing shortage. The unions say it was imposed on them without an opportunity to meet and confer with management in advance, as is required in their contracts.
Sheriff Corpus will hold a town hall-style meeting with her employees tomorrow in the department’s headquarters. The meeting isn’t open to the public.