As a cyclist who rides several thousand miles a year, maybe they deserved it maybe they didn't.
If a car runs a stop sign and hits another car or a person, there is a good likelihood of death or injury to the innocent party. If a bicyclist on an 18 pound bike hits a car because they blew through the stop sign, the car might have a dent, but the cyclist may be dead. If the cyclist hits a pedestrian, then the pedestrian may be seriously injured. Lastly, I don't need the police to "protect me" from myself. I can make an informed decision, based on my own risk assessment and the impact my actions may have on others.
This applies to helmets and traffic laws. I do however, fully respect the police role in protecting others from my actions. Laws are laws, but a little common sense goes a long way.
When I come to a stop sign in the middle of nowhere, I look in all directions. If there is a car anywhere in sight, I stop completely. If there is no car to be seen for miles, I run the stop sign. See above regarding consequences and risk assessment. If I were riding through a major city with tons of traffic and pedestrians, I would act differently due to the potential impact on 3rd parties.
I was actually on a group ride where the leaders were pulled over for rolling a stop sign (I saw the officer and stopped). They somewhat deserved it because a) it wasn't a remote stop sign and b) they didn't slow down nearly enough to assess the situation. Here's the irony to the story however, the officer who pulled them over passed us on an uphill double yellow to set up the "sting."
Midwest