An officer who acts directly under the sheriff, and performs all the duties of the sheriff’s office, a few only excepted where the personal presence of the high-sheriff is necessary. The sheriff is civilly responsible for the acts or omissions of his under-sheriff . Mozley & Whitley. A distinction is made between this officer and a deputy, the latter being appointed for a special occasion or purpose, while the former discharges, in general, all the duties re- quired by the sheriff’s office.
Black’s Law Online Dictionary
