What’s the difference between a sheriff’s office and a police department?
“The main difference is the area of jurisdiction. A sheriff’s office provides law enforcement services and/or jail services for a county or other civil subdivision of a state. A police department serves a specific municipality, city, town or village. Often, cities contract for law enforcement services with the county sheriff’s office.”
My county of about 62,500 people has a sheriff, a sheriff’s departmant and a jail located in the county seat. My town and its many hamlets has a chief of police and 11 other cops. They spend a lot of time giving out speeding tickets, handling local domestic altercations, and petty thievery.