San Mateo Co. officials call on Sheriff Christina Corpus to step down following explosive report

SAN MATEO, Calif. (KGO) -- The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors is calling for the immediate resignation of Sheriff Christina Corpus.

The calls come after an independent investigation accused the sheriff of abusing her power and having inappropriate relations with a member of her staff.

"I'm not resigning," Sheriff Corpus said. "I am an elected official. Elected by the people of this county that represent change."

Sheriff Corpus fiercely responded to allegations made against her in a newly released 400-page independent report.

"This is a hatchet job of an inquiry which was commissioned with a predetermined outcome in mind. And it was filled with lies," Corpus said.

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The investigation was prompted by complaints from sheriff's office staff.

Among other things, the resulting report accuses the sheriff of abuse of power, using intimidation and retaliation tactics, as well as having an inappropriate personal relationship with her chief of staff. It also alleges the sheriff used racist and homophobic language.

The sheriff denies all the allegations.

"These are people who have a vendetta against me," Sheriff Corpus said. "I am disgusted at how low these people will go."

But members of the county's Board of Supervisors believe it's the sheriff who's lying.

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During a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Supervisors Noelia Corzo and Ray Mueller called on the sheriff to resign immediately.

"It's clear we have a sheriff we cannot trust," Corzo said. "This independent investigation lays out the reasons."

Earlier in the day, the sheriff's department arrested Carlos Tapia, the president of the Deputy Sheriff's Association union, on two separate charges.

Tapia is one of many deputies who has criticized the sheriff and her office.

"I will not be intimidated by our sheriff," Tapia said. "I will not tolerate the sheriff's abuse of her authority and retaliation against our union."

The county supervisors say they believe Tapia's arrest was an effort by the sheriff to distract from the report's release.

"It's an example of the type of retaliatory culture that this investigation was founded upon to investigate," Mueller said.

While the process plays out, several San Mateo County community organizers worry it's the people of the county who will suffer the most.

That includes Jim Lawrence of Fixin' San Mateo County - a group specifically focused on police oversight and transparency.

"San Mateo County is one of the safest counties there is because we believe in our law enforcement," Lawrence said. "We trust them. There was transparency. There was that relationship we could depend on. That's destroyed - in one day, in one report."

While the Board of Supervisors cannot fire the sheriff, they say they will consider what steps can be taken at a meeting on Wednesday.

Read the full investigation report below or click here.