A US police officer has been dismissed for making insensitive remarks about the death of Jaahnavi Kandula, an Indian graduate student at Northeastern University in Seattle. Kandula, 23, was struck and killed in January by another police vehicle while crossing a street near her university.
Officer Daniel Auderer, who responded to the scene, was recorded on his body camera making callous comments about Kandula’s death. In a conversation with a colleague, he laughed and referred to her as a “regular person” and suggested the city should “just write a cheque.” He further remarked that her life was of “limited value.”
The Seattle Police Department condemned Auderer’s comments as “vile” and “callous.” The footage, widely shared on social media, led to public outrage. According to BBC reports, interim police chief Sue Rahr announced Auderer’s termination, stating that his actions had brought shame to the department and the police profession. She emphasized that his behavior inflicted pain on Kandula’s family and overshadowed his previous service to the community.
Auderer was under investigation by the Office of Police Accountability, which recommended his dismissal for unprofessional conduct and bias. The officer who struck Kandula with his patrol vehicle was reportedly traveling at 74 mph (119 km/h), causing her to be thrown over 100 feet (30 meters).
