Jefferson County Sheriff John P. Burns is accusing county Legislator Robert D. "Bobby" Ferris of making "ludicrous" statements and "micro-managing the Jefferson County jail."

Mr. Burns, a Democrat, was reacting to statements from Mr. Ferris in the Watertown Daily Times on Sunday. Mr. Ferris, a town of Watertown Republican who is running against Democrat Ronald H. Cole in District 11, told the Times that "the sheriff is not doing what he could to maximize efficiency of the jail." Mr. Ferris said studies concluded the county could max out its cells by putting women in Lowville and youths in another facility in the region.

"This statement is ludicrous since we will still be housing inmates in other jails costing the same amount of money," Mr. Burns said in a news release. "This is a perfect example of why Mr. Ferris should stick to selling car stereos instead of micro-managing the Jefferson County jail. ... Mr. Ferris should ask questions so he would receive correct answers instead of making statements to bolster his political agenda."

Mr. Ferris is the owner of Big Apple Music, which sells, among other things, stereo equipment for automobiles.

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