Sheriffs outside the US

[ChrisF202]

Now, I know about Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham and all. But are their any sheriff's outside the US in the modern world? If so what are their duties (courthouse security, warrants, normal police work, jails, etc)?

[NSWCop]

ChrisF202:

Check out this website for a brief overview of the Office of Sheriff in Australia and in particular New South Wales. In addition to the duties listed, Sheriffs Offices in Australia are increasingly becomming involved in Asset of crime confiscation and collection of State debts coming from unpaid fines, both Court applied and tickets.
Hope this helps:

Sheriffs in OZ (www.policensw.com/info/history/sheriff1.html) :D

[ChrisF202]

Thanks NSW Cop. I did some more research and found that their are also sheriffs in Canada. Canadian sheriffs carry out pretty much the same functions as do those in Australia.

[Sgt Lobster]

This is a link to the website of the High Sheriff of Lancashire:

http://www.priory.lancs.ac.uk/duchy.html


Lobster.:D

[Sgt Lobster]

Sheriffs in Scotland are judges:

http://www.scotcourts.gov.uk/index1.asp?path=%2Fhtml%2Fsheriff.htm


Lobster.

[KL]

In the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the west coast, there is a provincial Sheriffs Service that is a little different from the rest of the country. They have some civil duties but their primary function is courtroom security and prisoner transport. They are armed with 9mm pistols and drive marked cars. They don't do any enforcement, but I bet if you did something really stupid in front of them they would hold you for the RCMP.

[snake eyes]

Hi guys,
i serve as a Deputy Sheriff for the B.C. Sheriffs Services. We are primarily based in the courtroom setting (security, prisoner transport) and depending on which Sheriffs Office you are placed in you can have the opportunity to execute warrants and serve court documents (subpoenas, etc..)outside the courthouse setting. Just recently we have upped our responsibility to protection of witnesses and in custody persons outside the court settings. Like KL stated before we are armed and have marked cruisers and vans equiped with code 3 lights. We also do a bit of enforcement in that we can exercise our powers of a peace officer if we are performing one of our duties (ie: arrest for drug possesion, assault, or any criminal action which happens in front of any Deputy). Hope this answers any of your questions regarding Sheriffs in Canada , well at least for the province of British Columbia.

[PeteBroccolo]

In Saskatchewan, Sheriffs are mainly the administrators for the Queen's Bench Court (most-serious criminal charge judge-alone or jury trial and lower-court-conviction-appeal court level, as well as serious civil and divorce trials), as well as handling seizures of land and other property as the result of judgements and the sale thereof.

Court room security is generally administered by the Sheriff but provided by the local police, mainly if there is some valid concern due to the nature of the matter before the Court. Prisoner custody is usually up to the local police, but the RCMP provides a "provost" or prisoner escort, service between the local police cells and the Provincial or Federal gaols.

Security and escorting MAY be taken over by the Provincial Justice department, but budgetary constraints keep getting in the way of implementing this.

[Sgt Lobster]

Whilst the position of High Sheriff in England & Wales is largely ceremonial, under sheriffs and bailiffs are responsible for enforcing most civil process: The following group operates in my
neck of the woods:

http://www.enforcement.uk.com/about_us.html




Lobster.

[absea]

Sheriff's duties vary greatly not just from country to country, but also within the States. I work for a Michigan Sheriff Department as a detective and we do all parts of law enforcement, including traffic enforcement and major crime investigation. Other States the sheriff departments only handle civil process and the jails.

[absea]

Note...

Duplicate post deleted, sorry.

[gazza]

Got sheriffs here in Vic do the same job basically as they do in NSW

[ChrisF202]

Originally posted by absea
Sheriff's duties vary greatly not just from country to country, but also within the States. I work for a Michigan Sheriff Department as a detective and we do all parts of law enforcement, including traffic enforcement and major crime investigation. Other States the sheriff departments only handle civil process and the jails.
Here in Suffolk County, NY deputy sheriff's normally only do corrections, courthouse security, prisoner transport and civil enforcement. They do have full police officer powers and in recent years have pushed for a patrol function, dont know if they got it. They have detectives, K-9, SWAT, Marine Bureau etc and pretty muach anything else found in a full service sheriff's dept. in a major surbaban area.