andy was depicted as a country-smart sheriff and a caring, nurturing father. his laid-back approach to law enforcement made him an ideal sheriff for the sleepy town. andy had his finger on the pulse of the community and mayberry saw little native crime, with the exception of moonshining. out-of-town bank robbers, scam artists, thieving vagrants and other crooks frequently passed through the area to practice their evil deeds but were no match for the wise and wily sheriff. andy is known to have shot only one man in his position as sheriff, which is the key event surrounding the episode "high noon in mayberry". apparently, andy shot the suspect in the leg years ago during an armed robbery; in the latter of the episode, the suspect returns to mayberry to present andy with a shotgun as a gesture for having forced him away from his criminal lifestyle, giving him a chance to rethink his life and get back on track. in the episode "aunt bee takes a job", andy grabs warren's pistol and fires it in pursuit of two counterfeiters on their vehicle as they are attempting to flee. the sheriff badges worn by andy and barney are six point stars; the stars on their shoulder patches have five points.