I know in certain parts of the country the Sheriff has different responsibilities. In some states east of the Mississippi and north of the Mason-Dixon line the Sheriff only operates the county jails. You see what are called county police, etc.
But west of any state that touches the Mississippi River is known as the West, at one time the "Wild West." The County Sheriff is the big kahuna, the chief law enforcement officer of the county. It's an elected position and some times even an elected political position where the candidate runs as either a Republican or Democrat.
The largest Sheriffs department in the USA is the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department with almost 10,000 sworn deputies. Last week the people voted in a new Sheriff who says he supports the Second Amendment. We'll see by how many CCW's he issues.
Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Az. is still America's Sheriff.
:lol: