Heck Tate is the sheriff of Maycomb County.
In the story
Heck Tate must indirectly tell Atticus to reveal the fact that he is an expert with firearms. Atticus is asked to shoot a rabid dog before it can do any harm. Atticus is wise and is great but he is even better at shooting things with guns and he doesnt do it offten in fear of shooting a mokingbird which are illegal to kill
At the end of the novel, after Boo Radley has rescued Atticus' children (Jem and Scout) from a murder, Tate comes up with a story to tell Atticus in order to protect Radley. He is described as being as tall as Atticus but a little bit thinner. He also always wears boots and boot-cut pants with a belt of bullets.