The Seattle police officer, whose insensitive comments and laughter following the death of Indian student Jaahnavi Kandula had caused outrage, has been fired.
Interim Chief Sue Rahr at the Seattle Police Department said in an internal email that the hurt Auderer’s words have inflicted on Kandula’s family “cannot be erased. The actions 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”.
Rahr said as the leader of the organisation, it is her duty to uphold the high standards necessary to maintain public trust.”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 internal email seen by PTI.
Kandula, 23, was struck by a police vehicle driven by Seattle Police Officer Kevin Dave as she was crossing a street on January 23. Dave was driving 74 mph (more than 119 kmh) on the way to a report of a drug overdose call. Kandula was thrown 100 feet when she was struck by the speeding police patrol vehicle.
In bodycam footage released by the Seattle Police Department, Officer Daniel Auderer laughed about the deadly crash and remarked that “Uh, I think she went up on the hood, hit the windshield, and then when he hit the brakes, flew off the car…But she is dead.” After making these comments, Auderer “laughed hard for four seconds,” the Disciplinary Action Report said.
Comments taken out of context, says Seattle police officer
Earlier, The Seattle Police Officers’ Guild defended the officer accused of making insensitive comments after the death Kandula. They claimed his remarks were taken out of context and that viral videos fail to show the full story. In a letter released in August of last year, the officer explained he laughed at the absurdity of how incidents are litigated, believing the conversation was private. He was dispatched to assist with the fatality collision.
“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 wrote in his letter to Gino Betts, the director Office of Police Accountability.
Kandula her master’s degree posthumously
Northeastern University awarded a posthumous master’s degree to Kandula. Chancellor Kenneth W. Henderson had also expressed solidarity with the Indian student community and hopes for justice from ongoing investigations. He recalled Jaahnavi’s humor and infectious personality, stating her loss deeply affects students, staff, and faculty. Henderson also condemned the insensitive remarks made by a Seattle police officer after the accident.
Interim Chief Sue Rahr at the Seattle Police Department said in an internal email that the hurt Auderer’s words have inflicted on Kandula’s family “cannot be erased. The actions 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”.
Rahr said as the leader of the organisation, it is her duty to uphold the high standards necessary to maintain public trust.”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 internal email seen by PTI.
Kandula, 23, was struck by a police vehicle driven by Seattle Police Officer Kevin Dave as she was crossing a street on January 23. Dave was driving 74 mph (more than 119 kmh) on the way to a report of a drug overdose call. Kandula was thrown 100 feet when she was struck by the speeding police patrol vehicle.
In bodycam footage released by the Seattle Police Department, Officer Daniel Auderer laughed about the deadly crash and remarked that “Uh, I think she went up on the hood, hit the windshield, and then when he hit the brakes, flew off the car…But she is dead.” After making these comments, Auderer “laughed hard for four seconds,” the Disciplinary Action Report said.
Comments taken out of context, says Seattle police officer
Earlier, The Seattle Police Officers’ Guild defended the officer accused of making insensitive comments after the death Kandula. They claimed his remarks were taken out of context and that viral videos fail to show the full story. In a letter released in August of last year, the officer explained he laughed at the absurdity of how incidents are litigated, believing the conversation was private. He was dispatched to assist with the fatality collision.
“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 wrote in his letter to Gino Betts, the director Office of Police Accountability.
Kandula her master’s degree posthumously
Northeastern University awarded a posthumous master’s degree to Kandula. Chancellor Kenneth W. Henderson had also expressed solidarity with the Indian student community and hopes for justice from ongoing investigations. He recalled Jaahnavi’s humor and infectious personality, stating her loss deeply affects students, staff, and faculty. Henderson also condemned the insensitive remarks made by a Seattle police officer after the accident.