If anyone shot the cops the entire system would rush resources in and teach them a lesson. This is why the idea the second amendment protects against tyranny is silly.
Edit: s/unconditional/unconstitutional
No it doesn't. Small town cops get their power from their lack of having anything to do and the blind support of the community.
The small town I grew up in had a cop murder four people because he broke chase policy and even left his jurisdiction. The town newspaper wrote a weeks worth of articles talking about what a great guy he was and how all the youths in the town loved him.
Don't piss off a small town cop. They have literally nothing to do and can/will pull you over every single time they see you.
No actual data to back this suspicion of course, it's just anecdotal based on what I've seen and heard. Would be interested in data if anyone can provide it.
Of course the guy that shot him got railroaded but they never did tell the public what he and the guy with them were doing on that guy's property two towns out of their jurisdiction without a warrant...
I can see why the cop was feeling cockey though. This state has just about the lowest rate of firearms ownership in the country. They're not used to getting shot back at.
I have a friend who lives in Republic, WA - if you're not from hereabouts, you might have heard about that place from national news in the context of Loren Culp. She's an old leftie from the bygone era (used to be active in anti-war movement during Vietnam etc) and her politics are not exactly a secret there. At some point, one of her neighbors placed signs on their property saying things like "liberals and communists not welcome", "get out while you can" etc, angled specifically towards her driveway. The local cops - then still under Culp - not only didn't see any problem with that, but they actually told her it's good neighborly advice.
The NYPD also needs to be nice to about 30,000 people to accrue power too, but that is wielded against a city of 40 million, with industrial scale.