Snarky, police hating comments here are disgusting and reflect poorly on those making them. Rest in peace young hero and may your family find satisfaction and comfort in your dedication to your country and community.
Fine, here is an assessment free of snark. The cop, instead of policing a neighborhood or using visibile presence to reduce crime was sitting in an unmarked car (dark in color by my experience) on the side of a highway for the purpose of raising revenue for the state. He created an unsafe condition which led to his death. Placing revenue for the department above motorist safety are not the actions of a hero and perhaps if this were not a recurrent theme in policing you would see a few less dry eyes on the forum.
Nothing heroic about parking on a shoulder in the dark and getting run down.
Look, Police are intrusive and overly aggressive. Traffic enforcement efforts are often like chemo, deadly to the cancer and to the host body.
Police need to take a holistic approach to traffic safety. Ask the question, is what I am doing causing more problems than solving?