Attorneys for San Mateo County Sheriff's Capt. Eamonn Allen say they have tried and failed at least 11 times to hand legal papers to former Sheriff Christina Corpus at her San Bruno home, and they're now asking a judge to let them serve her another way. Allen's defamation lawsuit accuses Corpus of damaging his reputation by spreading rumors that he was having an affair, and his lawyers say she has spent months dodging the very process meant to bring her to court.
According to the Palo Alto Daily Post, Allen's attorneys, Young Park and Tara Hattendorf of Justice for Workers, visited Corpus's San Bruno home 11 times between April 25 and May 14 attempting to serve her with revised legal papers and a summons. A process server also tried contacting Corpus at the home six separate times over two weeks, and on most of those visits reported hearing dogs barking inside the house while a car matching her vehicle's description sat in the driveway. The attorneys also attempted service by mail — first-class letters that were never returned, and a certified-mail package that the U.S. Postal Service could not deliver because no authorized signer was present to accept it.
Attorneys Turn to Email and a Second Lawsuit for Help
With traditional service methods stalling, Allen's attorneys emailed lawyers representing Corpus in a separate lawsuit filed by Valerie Barnes, asking whether they would accept service on Corpus's behalf. The report notes those attorneys did not respond to the initial email or six follow-up messages. Barnes, whose own suit accuses Corpus of retaliating against her after she questioned the sheriff's plans to hire Victor Aenlle, has a case management conference scheduled for September 30. Corpus's attorney in that case, Wilson Leung of Murphy, Pearson, Bradley and Feeney, ultimately agreed to accept service on her behalf for the Barnes matter, though not for Allen's case.
Allen's attorneys have now asked San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Nancy Fineman to allow service by email or newspaper publication, alleging that Corpus attempted to avoid service and delay the process. A hearing on that alternate-service request is scheduled for November 17 in San Mateo County Superior Court. Under California Code of Civil Procedure Section 415.50, a court may authorize service by newspaper publication only after a plaintiff submits an affidavit demonstrating thorough reasonable diligence to locate and serve the defendant through conventional means, according to WomensLaw.org.
What Allen's Lawsuit Alleges
Allen filed his defamation lawsuit against Corpus and San Mateo County in December, claiming Corpus told a sergeant in April 2025 — while acting in her official capacity as sheriff, per the lawsuit — that Allen was having an affair with her former assistant, Valerie Barnes. Allen has said the allegation is entirely false. His suit claims the rumor jeopardized his reputation and standing in his community and distressed his wife.
The lawsuit also references Allen's cooperation with retired Judge LaDoris Cordell's investigation into Corpus's conduct and his participation in a November 2024 vote of no confidence against her. Corpus has filed no response to Allen's lawsuit, while San Mateo County filed affirmative defenses in May, questioning whether Allen's alleged harm should instead be covered by workers' compensation and whether he exhausted collective bargaining grievance procedures before suing.
A Sheriff's Office Already Reshaped by Scandal
The dispute unfolds against the backdrop of Corpus's historic ouster. The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to remove Corpus from office in October 2025 amid allegations of retaliation, misconduct and abuse of power, making her, according to Police1, the first elected county sheriff in California history removed from office by a board of supervisors. The vote followed passage of Measure A, which San Mateo County voters approved with 84% support in March 2025, amending the county charter to give the board authority to remove an elected sheriff for cause.
An independent hearing officer, James Emerson, issued a 42-page advisory opinion in October 2025 finding cause for Corpus's removal, citing her unlawful use of office to benefit executive director Victor Aenlle — with whom she allegedly maintained an improper personal relationship — along with retaliation against a captain and the ordering of union president Carlos Tapia's arrest without probable cause, according to the County of San Mateo. That finding built on an independent investigation led by Cordell, whose 408-page report, released in November 2024, concluded Corpus's administration was defined by widespread retaliation, conflicts of interest and abuses of authority.
Corpus has separately pursued her own legal claims against the county. She also failed in October 2025 to block the county from filling her vacant office, when Superior Court Judge Nina Shapirshteyn denied her emergency petition, ruling she had not shown a likelihood of success on her due process claims.
Allen has faced his own scrutiny. Hoodline previously reported on unauthorized living quarters Allen allegedly built inside the Millbrae police station while maintaining his primary residence in Meridian, Idaho, a home he purchased in June 2024 while commuting more than 650 miles for work weeks in San Mateo County. Allen's own lawsuit also alleges that on October 9, 2025 — five days before the board voted to remove Corpus — department leadership abruptly attempted to demote him from captain to lieutenant under the pretext of budget cuts, without changing his salary. Before filing his Superior Court complaint, Allen had submitted a $15 million administrative claim against the county and Corpus in October 2025 over the affair allegations.
For now, the underlying defamation claims remain unresolved, and the service dispute will be taken up at the November 17 hearing before Judge Fineman.
