Title: Seattle Police Officer Faces Backlash over Insensitive Remarks About Woman’s Death
Seattle, WA – The Seattle Police Department has released body-camera footage that shows Officer Daniel Auderer joking about the death of a young woman who was tragically struck by a police cruiser earlier this year. The incident occurred on January 23, when 23-year-old graduate student Jaahnavi Kandula lost her life after being hit by a marked patrol vehicle.
The recently revealed footage captures Auderer on a phone call with guild President Mike Solan, where they can be seen laughing and making inappropriate jokes about the incident. Following concerns raised by a department employee who watched the video, the footage has now become the subject of an investigation conducted by the Seattle Office of Police Accountability.
It has been revealed that the officer involved in the collision was driving at a high speed of 74 mph at the time of the incident. Responding officers found Kandula with life-threatening injuries and she tragically succumbed to them shortly after. Shockingly, the released footage shows Auderer suggesting that Kandula’s life had “limited value” and proposed that the city simply write a check to settle the matter.
Auderer has defended his remarks, claiming they were intended to mock the city’s lawyers. However, the public outcry against his comments suggests that they were highly insensitive to the loss of human life. The incident has sparked widespread outrage from the community, with the Community Police Commission labeling the recording as “heartbreaking and shockingly insensitive.”
This incident follows the recent conclusion of federal oversight of the Seattle Police Department by a federal judge. The decision to end the oversight has already drawn criticism, as many argue that this case highlights the need for continued external monitoring to ensure the department is held accountable for its actions.
The Seattle Office of Police Accountability is currently investigating the incident, while the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office is conducting a criminal review. The outcome of these investigations will determine the potential repercussions for Officer Auderer and any further action that may be taken to prevent such incidents from happening in the future.
As the community processes the shocking nature of these revelations, it remains to be seen how the Seattle Police Department will regain the trust of its residents and work towards repairing the fractured relationship between law enforcement and the public it serves.
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