Seattle: The Seattle police department has fired the US police officer whose insensitive remarks and laughter over the horrific death of 23-year-old Indian student Jaahnavi Kandula sparked outrage. Officer Daniel Auderer was heard on bodycam footage laughing about Kandula's death and saying she had "limited value".
Kandula was killed in January last year after she was struck by a police vehicle driven by Officer Kevin Dave, who was driving at more than 119 kmph while responding to a drug overdose call. She was a graduate student at Northeastern University at the Seattle campus. Kandula's death came into higher scrutiny after Auderer's insensitive remarks.
Auderer, 49, apparently laughed about the deadly crash for four seconds and dismissed any implication that Dave might be at fault or that a criminal investigation was necessary. "Yeah, just write a check... Eleven thousand dollars. She was 26 anyway," Auderer said in the video, misstating Kandula's age. "She had limited value".
When asked at an Office of Police Accountability interview about his comments that Kandula had “limited value”, Auderer claimed he was “ridiculing the city attorneys who would be tasked with litigating a potential wrongful death lawsuit.” India strongly raised the issue at the highest level in Washington and sought prompt action on the killing of Kandula, and the highly insensitive behaviour of the police officer in Seattle.
Impact of Auderer's words 'cannot be erased'
Seattle police's interim chief Sue Rahr said in an email seen by news agency PTI that the pain inflicted by Auderer’s words on Kandula’s family “cannot be erased". "The actions (of) this individual police officer have brought shame on the Seattle Police Department and our entire profession, making the job of every police officer more difficult," she said.
“There is no doubt that the named officer’s cruel comments and callous laughter about the tragic death caused deep pain to Ms Kandula’s family, but also immeasurable damage to the public trust of police in the Seattle community, across the nation, and around the world,” she said in the interim email, adding that it was her responsibility to uphold the high standards needed to maintain public trust.
It is quite unusual for a police chief to explain a disciplinary decision to the entire organisation, but Rahr spoke of an unusual enough circumstance when the case "has been covered extensively in the public, has garnered international media and diplomatic attention". She also mentioned that a number of people, even those known to be very “pro-police,” felt the “dehumanising laughter heard on the video is more outrageous and disturbing” than Kandula’s death.
'Betrayal of sacred trust': Seattle police chief
Rahr said Auderer's "laughter and callous remarks" about the "limited value" of Kandula's life represented a cruel mockery of the sanctity of her life and constituted a "betrayal of that sacred trust", adding that his comments caused extreme damage to the public’s trust in the entire Seattle Police Department. She noted that the impact of Auderer’s actions is “so devastating that it cannot be mitigated by his intent to keep his conversation private.”
“For me to allow the officer to remain on our force would only bring further dishonour to the entire department. For that reason, I am going to terminate his employment,” she said in the email. Mayor Bruce Harrell, in a statement issued Wednesday afternoon, said he supported Rahr’s decision, even though city officials and the chief recognise it will likely be appealed, according to Seattle Times.
In a letter to the Office of Police Accountability dated August 3, Auderer said that his remarks were made as a mockery to lawyers and that he had laughed at the ridiculousness of how these incidents are litigated. He also said that he understands that citizens would rightfully believe he was being insensitive to the death after hearing the video. "At the time I believed the conversation was private and not being recorded. The conversation was also not within the course of my duties," he told Gino Betts, director of the Office of Police Accountability.
No charges against Seattle cop who killed Kandula
It was announced in February that officer Dave, who struck and killed Kandula, will not face any criminal charges due to lack of sufficient evidence, according to authorities. King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion said that she believes they lack the evidence to prove a criminal case beyond a reasonable doubt.
"It is the responsibility of the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to review all available evidence relating to the case involving Seattle Police Officer Kevin Dave and the January 2023 collision death of Jaahnavi Kandula. After staffing this case with senior deputy prosecuting attorneys and office leadership, I have determined that we lack sufficient evidence under Washington State law to prove a criminal case beyond a reasonable doubt," Manion said.
(with inputs from PTI)
