Sheriff's Sale vs. Foreclosure Sale

[Jennifer Watson]

I am familiar with the intricacies of foreclosure sales, redemption, etc and have bought two properties from foreclosure sales.  There is a property that interests me that is being sold through a sheriff's sale, it appears due to the owner owing Alabama taxes.  Is there any real difference between the two types of sales or do they function the same way?  The specific property doesn't have a mortgage (which is probably why the state is conducting the sheriff's sale) but looks like it may have an IRS lien in addition to the state tax lien.