Someone shooting a police officer or a judge has not just killed an individual. They have expressed their contempt for the very underpinnings of civilized society. They have committed a crime against us all, and they deserve to pay a higher price for that crime.
"expressed their contempt for the very underpinnings of civilized society"
Any murder does that.
"They have committed a crime against us all, and they deserve to pay a higher price for that crime."
Any murder is a crime against us all. I don't care what JOB someone has, their life is no more important than anyone else's. If someone were to kill my daughter and a cop on the same day, and the cop's killer got the death penalty but my daughter's only got life (which equates to 20 years), I would be pissed. And so would you if one of your children were killed. You would not think it fair then that the cop's killer got more punishment just because his victim was a cop.