Some things take time, it seems to take more time to get someone out to a rural area.  However, unless you can rewind time and send a trooper out instantly - no one knows what that outcome would have been. He could have killed himself the second police showed up, hours later or not?  I agree that policing in the rural areas of the state are far from ideal. However, having lived in big cities, it isn't always as fast to talk to a 'person of interest' as you imply. First, the police have to determine who the 'person(s) of interest' are/is - and then they like to do this thing called research and investigate before approaching them as well. Sometimes, gasp, getting probable cause so if the person doesn't cooperate they can still take them in for questioning.