$29M settlement for Indian student's family killed by US cop
What's the story
The city of Seattle has settled a lawsuit with the family of Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old Indian graduate student who was killed by a speeding police officer in 2023. The settlement amount is $29 million. The case had started after Kandula's family filed a $110 million wrongful death, negligence, and assault lawsuit against both the city and former police officer Kevin Dave in 2024.
Case background
Kandula was crossing the street when hit by Dave's vehicle
The incident occurred on January 23, 2023, when Officer Dave was responding to a high-priority overdose call. He was driving at 119km/h on Dexter Avenue, where the speed limit is 40km/h. Kandula was crossing the street when she was hit by Dave's vehicle. Initially, the King County Prosecutor's Office decided not to charge Dave due to insufficient evidence for a criminal case beyond reasonable doubt. Interim Seattle Police Chief Sue Rahr later fired Dave from the Seattle Police Department.
Public reaction
Officer Auderer joked about Kandula's death
The night of Kandula's death, then-officer Daniel Auderer was dispatched to give a drug recognition test to Dave in accordance with police department regulation. Body camera footage showed Auderer joking about Kandula's death. Auderer was heard saying, "Just write a check....$11,000. She was 26 anyway, she had limited value." This led to public outrage and calls for an investigation into the Seattle Police Department's conduct. Auderer was eventually fired in 2024 and has since sued the city for wrongful termination.