Sheriff’s are elected. I don’t believe the governor can remove them. They are the reason the state police report to the governor. Because the founding fathers created sheriffs, who essentially have an army. The FF gave the governor the state police (the name until the 1930’s when state police became Highway Patrol because of the Nazis.) Without the state police any county sheriff could arrest the governor. To forestall that type of political shenanigans the governor needed his own armed force. Using that force to collect revenue via speeding tickets came much later.
Funny; They're STILL called State Police here in NY......Hmmmmmmmm...
They're still called State Police in NY and SC where I now live. In fact, they're still called State Police in many states.