Exactly this. Like, nobody is blaming the officer for being scared upon hearing a gun-sounding noise, that's just common sense that they should be actually, but to empty the mag at... what? Without knowing what the target was? Or did he legit think that it was his car that was the threat?

That said, it's surely a tough job, especially for the pay and the danger. Which is all the more reason to train them at least up to the level of a kid going squirrel hunting?

Agreed. While a sniper round with a silencer or stray bullet from a streetfight hitting the hood of the car might sound similar, there's no way it could have been any firearm from inside the vehicle. A paranoid but well-trained cop getting down behind the engine block and visually scanning the area for danger? Understandable, but a bit silly unless you're in a dangerous downtown area. But emptying your mag into the car? You can't have people with firearms that poorly trained and that jumpy... I say if they must have guns (which could be necessary in the case of an actual armed criminal), send them to bootcamp and have the army drill some threat assessment and trigger discipline into them...