Yes, it does mean that it is the officer's fault if they violate department regulations or the law or even common sense. Officers thought that it wasn't their fault and that is why the regulations and laws were written. Just because an alleged offender may also be culpable doesn't mean that an officer is excused from responsibility. Some departments and officers have learned this lesson the hard way around here. Other departments have developed effective training programs to mitigate the danger of pursuits. As always, YMWV by department and local laws in your area may be different than the laws around here. There have been some serious accidents and the courts have said that the LE folks are responsible for the accidents their drivers are involved in.
You're arguing that it's not the officer's fault if they don't break the law. I'm pointing out that if they have an accident during a pursuit then they broke the law which is intended to protect the public. In other words, it is the officer's fault and the results of many trials have said that.
Departmental regulations are not law, they are exactly what they sound like. Officers CAN break the law to apprehend criminals, hence the limited sovereign immunity. You don't see police in pursuits stopping at stop signs much, and you don't see them later in traffic court as a result. I was specifically talking about CRIMINAL law, which is why I made the distinction.
If an officer is acting in good faith, he has wide latitude in the actions he can take. In fact, in order to affect an arrest, he can use ANY force he reasonably believes is necessary, up to deadly force, to apprehend the suspect, and he is legally allowed to do so. Yes, if you commit a minor traffic violation, and put up enough resistance to the arrest YOU CAN BE KILLED AND THE OFFICER MAY BE JUSTIFIED IN DOING SO.
"Fault" is a civil issue. That is where police have a lot of liability. If they are chasing somebody and run into a bus load of kids and kill them, they will most certainly be held liable for damages, even if they pretty much did everything right. But unless they did something unreasonable in the chase, they will NOT be going to jail.
The flip side of this is that if the arrest is false, meaning the officer KNOWS it is for a charge that is false, the "offender" becomes the victim, and he/she may resist that arrest with force up to and including deadly force. YOU CAN LEGALLY KILL A POLICE OFFICER THAT IS FALSELY ARRESTING YOU. But, the standard for that is very high and your chances of making that case successfully in court are slim.
This is why people are filming police a lot now and the police hate it. They have been getting away with abusing the wide latitude they have in discretion and procedure and are now getting caught. They will have to either start toeing the line with legality or getting more clever in their violations of it.