The race for Roanoke County sheriff turned personal and antagonistic Friday.

As expected, Roanoke County police Lt. Steve Turner made his formal announcement seeking the Republican nomination for the job.

Mike Stovall, who previously announced that he is running as an independent, immediately accused Turner of betraying the Stovall campaign, where Turner had been an insider until last week.

"Steve Turner is a ... Benedict Arnold. ... How can the citizens of Roanoke County put their trust in somebody who treats his friends this way?" asked Stovall, currently chairman of the Roanoke County School Board.

Stovall and Turner had an agreement about the race, Stovall said, and Turner has been privy to all his campaign strategies.

Turner was among "the people who have been involved with me for years, who were sitting at the table, going over plans for the campaign, taking notes," Stovall said.

Turner acknowledged the association, but insisted that "even though I sat in meetings, there was nothing talked about ... that was not a common strategy. There was nothing discussed that was top secret."

Turner also concedes he had agreed to take a captain's position in a Stovall administration, where he initially thought he could bring his management talents to bear.

But, he said, over time, "I was not that comfortable being with Mike Stovall. ... I don't want to sling mud, I'm just saying I felt more and more uncomfortable, and that I was not going toward my goal," which is to be sheriff some day.

"I sat back and realized I had 37 years' experience, and I can be the best sheriff," Turner said. "Why would I want to work for somebody else if I can win the election and be the best sheriff?"

The position is now held by Mike Winston, who was appointed to the job when longtime county Sheriff Gerald Holt retired in March to become U.S. marshal for the Western District of Virginia. Winston had been Holt's chief deputy.

Winston has already won the Democratic nomination for the November special election to complete Holt's term.

Both Stovall and Turner said they were under what turned out to be the misimpression that the county's Republicans were not interested in fielding a candidate.

Stovall did, in fact, talk to Mike Bailey, the county Republican chairman, a couple of months ago about seeking the party's nomination, Bailey confirmed Friday.

Because he thought Stovall had been more closely aligned with Democratic candidates in the past, Bailey said, he advised him not to seek the Republican nomination. Bailey said his executive committee agreed with that conclusion.

Turner said Friday that when he found out the Republicans were looking for a candidate, he called Stovall before meeting with Bailey's executive committee last week.

"I did the honorable thing," Turner said.

Most of that executive committee was on hand endorsing Turner's announcement Friday. Turner was introduced by Roanoke County Commonwealth's Attorney Randy Leach.

Despite his initial snub by the Republicans, Stovall said Friday he has "not closed the door" on the possibility of seeking the nomination at the party's mass meeting Aug. 12.

If he formally renounces any association with any other party and promises his support of the GOP's candidates, fills out a statement of intent and pays a $100 filing fee before Aug. 7, he could attend the meeting and challenge Turner for the nomination.

Bailey said he believes rank-and-file Republicans would have a difficult time supporting a candidate who achieved the nomination that way.

Stovall has submitted the required 125 signatures on a petition for an independent candidacy, Roanoke County Registrar Judy Stokes confirmed Friday. He has not yet filed his declaration of candidacy or certification of qualifications -- which include being a registered voter in Roanoke County, she said.

However, he has until 5 p.m. on Aug. 13 to do that, even if he were to try for and lose the Republican nomination.

"If they want a winner, somebody who can win, they'll want me," Stovall said Friday.

"I'm going to run a positive campaign," he said, adding that Turner "can't out-campaign me, can't outlast me."

For his part, Turner insisted he put his former association with Stovall on the table before the GOP committee before receiving its nomination. "I am a man of honor," he said. "I don't want anybody to think of me as a traitor or two-faced. They know me as a man of my word."

Turner contends it is the Stovall campaign that is trying to make too much of how Turner came to his decision.

When he prepared to set up a website with the URL steve turnerforsheriff.com, he found out that someone -- not Stovall -- had bought the domain name the same day he told Stovall about his plans to run -- a move Turner views as a way to confuse voters.