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JP - Here's my take: Something like this occurs when an agency, usually a small one, is facing something they are not equipped to deal with. The decision is usually defined by;
1. Lack of manpower (i.e. can't spend the time investigating due to other demands);
2. Scope of the crime (i.e. a local business is blown up by a truck load of dynamite, etc.);
3. Don't have the resources to carry the investigation where ever it may take them (i.e. have to go to another part of the state to talk to witness/suspect);
4. Local officers don't have the training or experience to deal with the crime (i.e. local family of six found murdered in their house and nothing to indicate it was murder/suicide by one of the family members).
5. Politically sensitive (i.e. don't want to become embroiled in a racial or religious issue).

The list could go on.

Normally, not always, when a case is turned over to another agency, the originating agency steps aside. So, the answers to your questions are:
Would he 1) expect to continue collecting evidence/taking statements regarding the case if such things arise? He probably would not 'expect' to. If he discovers something that is germane to the case then he would certainly pass it along, but his active role as an investigator would be over.
2) provide office space for them to work out of, since their office is over an hour's drive away? He certainly would offer it as a professional courtesy.
3) be kept informed of the sheriff's department's progress on the case? He could request it, but it doesn't always happen.
4) Could he choose to investigate the murder without help from the sheriff's department? Yes. But, if he does it from being bull-headed or is an egomaniac it could bite him in the ass.

#1 - Tommy Lee Jones in 'The Electric Mist'

PB -This is probably only the tip of the iceberg. I doubt no one knew. They probably knew for a long time, maybe from the beginning. That's a terrible sounding indictment of the program, but unfortunately true. The abuses that arise from well meaning projects somehow always seem to develop problems. Like the more recent 'Fast and Furious' gun smuggling operation originated and protected by the ATF.
By CNN Library
Updated 12:41 PM ET, Fri November 7, 2014
Here's some background information about Operation Fast and Furious. From 2009 - 2011, under Operation Fast and Furious, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Phoenix Field Division, along with other partners, allowed illegal gun sales, believed to be destined for Mexican drug cartels, in order to track the sellers and purchasers.
Facts:
An estimated 1,400 weapons were lost by the ATF in Mexico. Two of the missing weapons linked to the operation turned up at the Arizona murder scene of United States Border Patrol agent Brian Terry.

John - There's no problem with a PD allowing an SO to investigate a major crime. Your rationale is typical of the relationship between many small PDs and SOs.  If there is any flaw, it is the idea that the SO would do it uninvited. Basically the subject boils down to two issues; authority vs practicality

All I can refer to is Texas. All major and most minor crimes are violations of State statutes. You normally don't have them repeated in local government statutes, i.e. you won't have a statute prohibiting murder in the city ordinances. The point is, since most crimes are violations of State laws, then the 'authority' to intervene lies in the purview of an escalating hierarchy; city police, county sheriff, district attorney, and state police.

The other side of the coin is protocol and practicality. A dispute like you describe would ultimately end up being fought out in the political arena and may even end up in some kind of court hearing. Since all those people are elected, they probably wouldn't want to start a turf war. It could end up being political suicide for somebody.

JP - There's no easy answer. In very general terms, it's typically 90% boredom punctuated by 10% 'holy shit'. But, you have to remember that much of that is in the eye of the beholder. It's like most anything else. In the beginning everything was fascinating and exciting, but over the years those things become mundane. Not a lot different I suppose from any activity. When I first began learning to fly I stayed wired from the time I closed the cockpit door until the flight was over. But, after a while I found myself fighting going to sleep on a long flight. Same with riding motorcycles. I've actually gone to sleep on a long road trip - not for long, but it happened. You probably experienced the same thing when you started driving a car.

As far as the day to day patrol stuff is concerned, a lot of it depends on what time you are on patrol. Day shift (7a-3p) sucks. A myriad of minor fender benders, lady locked out of her car, direct traffic at a busy intersection, shuttle patrol cars to the service center, a burglary report, run radar in a school zone, blah, blah.

Evenings (3p-11p) are the best for potential activity. Domestic disturbance, check bars for drunks and underage drinkers, fight in progress, someone firing a gun, hookers working the parking lot at a truck stop. Most anything people do that involve police intervention happens during those hours.

Deep nights (11p-7a) are primarily spent protecting businesses from burglars. Patrol your area, stop and ID anyone who seems out of place, run license numbers on suspicious vehicles, check doors, look for unusual things in store windows (broken glass, light out, blocked view, etc.), and most important - stay awake.

That's the 90% I'm talking about. You have to remember that you very seldom just drive up on something taking place.  Most patrol activity is reactive - everything is over by the time you get there. The exception is deep nights, which is somewhat proactive.

But, at any time, any shift, something in the 10% category can occur. The guy's still there with the gun, the routine stop turns into a pursuit, the burglar is actually still in the building, the wreck involves people trapped in a car and it's catching of fire, the drunk decides he wants to punch a cop and the fight is on, etc.

One of the biggest dangers of that 90% routine is that if you are not careful you get complacent and lose your edge. That's the main reason officers get hurt or dead.

Actually I've tried the fun, distracting stuff (that's what all the 'Tidbits' were - an escape.) I've read and posted so many reviews I'm stir crazy. Guess that leaves the drinking. Does anyone know how to do needlepoint?