Keep in mind that stories like these are pretty rare and the US is a big place. Even if the police in the US were generally as good as you'd hope any police were there would still be the occasional story of someone abusing their power or making egregious mistakes just due to the sheer size of the US. That's not an excuse, it's just a reminder that you need to temper your judgment of a place that you might have formed based on stories of the most freakish and abnormal events in that place (like, say, imagining that Pakistan is full of terrorists or some such).

Additionally, for various reasons you don't hear reports of equivalent stories like this happening in, for example, Europe, though such things are not exactly significantly less common there.

Well sometimes I read forums like ar15.com where lot´s of security officers post, and also some police forums in Spain (I got some police friends and I like commenting with them about these issues). I have noticed that in the USA the policemen´s state of mind is much more violent (more movie style) and "shoot first ask questions later" than in Europe. I think is logical under their point of view, because of the long campaign of fear and violence that´s been playing on the media. Also it´s true that american criminals are more likely to just draw a handgun and start a confrontation with police. Maybe this is due to the difference in prison sentence for the same crime. Here in Spain, most criminals just walk away after they spend a night in prison, and even a hard sentence for drugs or a kill will have great discounts that effectively make stays longer than 10 years in prison very rare. Also live inside jails is much more humane than in the States. Oppose that to the third strike rule, that will put you for live in jail even if the last offense is minor.(I don´t know if this law is still active)

With over 300 million people, extreme things can happen to .0001% of the people any day, and that's still 300 people affected. 300 stories to choose from a day makes for lots of sensational news.

On average, it's not that bad. Yes, there are assholes everywhere (police and otherwise), but for the most part the stuff you read about is few and far between.

That being said, knowing the proper way to deal with people in authority positions is incredibly important. In this case, she should have asked for ID (yelling at them through the window if necessary). If they kept insisting that she roll the window down - and for some reason her car is unlike every other car out there, requiring the engine to be on, she should have tried to explain that through the window.

(Seriously, what cars require the engine to be running for the windows to roll down?)

I can't recall ever being in a car with power windows that would work with the car completely turned off (key out of the ignition). You can turn the key backward or partially forward in most cars just to engage the battery and operate the windows, but she may not have known about that.

Yep, the accessory setting (key turned on click forward) should do the trick - providing power for windows/radio etc.

Upon further consideration, I wonder if she had a push-button starter. Having never driven a key-less car before, how the heck does the accessory setting work (if at all)?

"how the heck does the accessory setting work (if at all)?"

In my wife's old Prius, tap the power switch without a foot on the brake and you get accessory mode. Tap the power switch with a foot on the brake and the car goes into run mode although its in park mode.

Confusing as hell precisely one time, especially if you're used to an automatic transmission. My regular tech car won't start unless its in park or neutral, why would I push on the brake? My left foot is already busy kicking the parking brake out... and the Prius does in fact have a parking brake for the left foot to kick out making the UI even more confusing. However it makes perfect sense to a manual transmission driver, because you always kick the parking brake out with your left foot and then hold the clutch in with left foot.

The confusing as hell part comes the first time you shut off the car and put your left foot on the parking brake to kick it out like you'd do with a normal car, and it boots up in accessory mode and won't move. WTF? Hopefully you try leaving the parking brake alone and press the regular brake before you ask for a tow.

This is all beside the point. If a bunch of crazy men in civilian clothes on a dark night waving guns rush my wife or daughter and start screaming at her, I want her to escape at all costs, run them over if necessary. Behaving like a pack of uncivilized wolves has consequences and she shouldn't feel sorry at all. Those officers should all be in jail.

It's all very well saying she should have asked for ID, but lets face it - if you were suddenly faced with a bunch of armed strangers yelling at you, would you be thinking straight? The story did say that she panicked, and I can't say I blame her.