(The Center Square) – The Seattle Office of Police Accountability is investigating footage of a police officer who made light of a pedestrian who was struck and killed by a Seattle police vehicle in January.
The Seattle Police Department released footage showing Seattle Police Officers Guild Vice President Daniel Auderer on a phone call, reportedly with Seattle Police Officers Guild President Mike Solan, on Jan. 23. That night, Jaahnavi Kandula, 23, was hit and killed by a marked Seattle police vehicle going 74 mph in an intersection.
After Auderer is heard confirming that the pedestrian had died, he laughs in response.
“It’s a regular person – just write a check – $11,000; she was 26 anyways, she had limited value,” Auderer said, getting Kandula’s age wrong, in the released body-worn camera footage.
A Seattle Police Department employee identified the footage of Auderer in the routine course of business, and brought the concerning statements to the attention of Chief Adrian Diaz, who then referred the matter to the Seattle Office of Police Accountability for investigation, as required by department policy and the city’s Accountability Ordinance.
The reported explanation by Auderer for his comments was that he was mocking lawyers.
The Seattle Police Department said in a statement that it released the video in the interest of transparency amid the investigation.
“[The Seattle Police Department] has been in touch with the family of the victim pedestrian and continues to honor their expressed request for privacy,” the department said in a statement. “As others in the accountability system proceed with their work, we again extend our deepest sympathy for this tragic collision.”
Seattle Community Police Commission Co-Chairs Harriet Walden, Patricia Hunter and Joel Merkel called Auderer’s comments “heartbreaking and shockingly insensitive.”
The Seattle Community Police Commission added that the footage speaks to the concerns it repeatedly raised about elements of Seattle Police Department culture and Seattle Police Officers Guild resistance to officer accountability measures included in the 2017 Police Accountability Ordinance.
