“What happened to #JaahnaviKandula is brutal, inhumane, pathetic. And Seattle PD should be ashamed," one user said.
Imani Walker
·Writer
Mon, September 18, 2023
A photo of Jaahnavi Kandula is displayed with flowers, Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023 in Seattle, at the intersection where she was killed by a Seattle Police officer driving north while responding to a nearby medical incident. A city watchdog agency is investigating after a body-worn camera captured one Seattle Police Department union leader joking with another following the death of a Kandula, who was struck and killed by a police cruiser as she was crossing a street.
Canadians are reacting to the death of Jaahnavi Kandula after a Seattle police officer’s body cam revealed the cop laughed and made inappropriate comments about the 23-year-old student who was killed after being hit by another officer’s patrol car.
The incident happened on Jan. 23 but police released the footage last Monday as the city’s police watchdog, the Office of Police Accountability (OPA), investigate.
In the video, officer Daniel Auderer, who is also the vice president of the city’s police union, can be heard confirming Kandula’s death, laughing and saying, “Yeah, just write a check — $11,000. She had limited value.”
According to The Seattle Times, Kevin Dave, the officer who struck and killed Kandula was responding to a call about an overdose. He was driving about 120 km/h when he collided with Kandula, whose body flung over 100 feet (30 metres).
As a drug-recognition officer, Auderer was called to the scene to determine if Dave was under the influence when he crashed into Kandula. It was on a phone call with Mike Solan, the president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG), that Auderer can be heard making the controversial comments that some Canadians call “disgusting.”
“Who laughs and makes sick jokes after killing someone?” wrote one Twitter user.
Kandula was expecting to graduate in December with a master’s degree in information systems from the Seattle campus of Northeastern University.
She came to Seattle from Andhra Pradesh, a state in India’s southern coastal region. Relatives told The Seattle Times that Kandula was in the U.S. so she could one day support her mother back home in India.
In Canada, the news of Kandula’s death has shaken South Asian communities, including the South Asian Women’s Centre (SAWC) in Toronto.
In an email to Yahoo News Canada, Kripa Sekhar, SAWC’s executive director wrote, “Jaahnavi Kandula’s death by a policeman is a tragedy, particularly because a cop who is supposed to protect people, we believe has become a perpetrator of the crime. His disdain for Jaahnavi indicates that the lives of racialized women is dispensable. Our deepest sympathies are with the mother of this international student from India. She died in a strange country with no family support. We feel there must be very deep systemic changes to law enforcement that includes behavioural change, attitude and discipline.”
It’s a sentiment that even influencers and some celebrities are echoing. Online, comedian and television host Lilly Singh asked her social media followers to educate themselves about Kandula’s story. Singh explains that the story hits close to home as someone who has witnessed just how hard Indian women work and study in their homeland and even abroad just to make ends meet.
“India has the biggest population in the world. Indian women make up a big population of the world. If we continue to ignore Indian women, we are screwed and at a loss because of this. Too often, South Asian women are dismissed. Whether it’s tragic situations like this or smaller situations.”
As the news circulates, people across the world are expressing their outrage and are demanding justice for Kandula. The hashtags #JusticeforJaahnaviKandula and #IndianLivesMatter are currently making their rounds on social media.
Since Monday, thousands of people around the globe have signed Change.org and Move On petitions addressed to Seattle and Washington elected officials, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, President Joe Biden, White House administration, as well as the Seattle Police Department.
“The Indian community in the entire country and world demand justice for Jaahnavi Kandula, and is asking for the officers to be held accountable. Not only was she mowed down like nothing, but the conversation of the officers after the event are utterly disgraceful and a shame to humanity. We demand that those officers be discharged from their duties, with no pension, and this incident be treated as manslaughter, and prosecuted,” reads the petitions.
“Jaahnavi Kandula is a daughter, a sister, a cousin, a friend and a human being, in addition to being Indian. Unlike what the officer said, Jaahnavi had VALUE, and an UNLIMITED VALUE. Let us stand and raise a voice against such abhorrent thinking, that Brown people have limited value. Despite the professional, social, and financial role played by Indians in the United States, we have not been able to escape racism and inequality many times, and our entire community has still quietly moved on,” the petition page continues.
Since the news broke, Auderer has not made public comments about the incident. The Seattle Police Department said it would not comment until the OPA concludes its investigation.
Seattle mayor aplogises to Indian community over video of policeman laughing after student’s death
Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Sun, September 17, 2023
Seattle mayor Bruce Harrell reportedly apologised to the members of the Indian community amid outrage over a police officer joking about the death of a university student.
Jaahnavi Kandula, 23, was thrown 100 feet after being hit by the vehicle while on a crosswalk at the Northeastern University Seattle campus in January.
Kevin Dave, the officer responsible, was driving at 74mph in a 25mph zone. The student from India later died that night from her injuries.
"As a Mayor of Seattle, I want you to know that our community is heartbroken and mourns alongside your families, friends and everyone who shared the privilege of knowing Jaahnavi," the mayor wrote in a letter addressed to the student's parents.
"I want to be clear that the comments made by one person does not reflect the feelings of our city or the communities that call it home," he added.
The police force faced backlash after a bodycam video made public earlier this week showed officer Daniel Auderer, who was dispatched to the crash scene, describing the incident and laughing.
“No, it’s a regular person – yeah, yeah, just write a check. $11,000. She was 26 [sic] anyway. She had limited value,” he says on the video.
The video has been referred to the Seattle Office of Police Accountability “for investigation into the context in which those statements were made and any policy violation that might be implicated”, a statement confirmed.
A memorial for Jaahnavi Kandula (AP)
About 20 people representing the Indian community met mayor Harrell and police chief Adrian Diaz on Saturday, seeking more respect and a cultural change in the city.
"Members of the Indian community have come together because of the unfortunate and insensitive remarks I believe were made," the mayor said, according to NDTV.
"We are making sure that our apology as city officials is felt to your community and family, my condolences for your loss."
Members of the South Asian community marched on Saturday evening to the site where Kandula was struck by the police officer, demanding an investigation into the student's death.
The protesters held signs that said “Jaahnavi had more value than SPD” and “Justice for Jaahnavi, jail killer cops".
"I think this has galvanized people because it’s so blatant and disrespectful to put a value on a human's life at $11,000," Patricia Hunter, co-chair of the Community Police Commission, said in an interview Friday.
"And it galvanizes people to see that the culture at Seattle Police Department has some issues that need to be immediately addressed.”
The Consulate General of India in San Francisco tweeted that it has taken the “deeply troubling” matter up with authorities in Seattle and in Washington, DC, and that it wants a thorough investigation and action against those involved.
The US State Department in a statement called the situation disturbing.
“We are aware of, and are disturbed by, what was said about Ms. Kandula’s death in the bodycam footage recently released by the Seattle Police Department,” the State Department said.
“We would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere condolence to Ms. Kandula’s family and loved ones.”
The Seattle Police Officers Guild said that it understands the outrage caused by the “highly insensitive comments".
“It sullens the profession of law enforcement, the reputation of all Seattle Police officers and paints Seattle in a terrible light,” the union said.
“We feel deep sorrow and grief for the family of Jaahnavi Kandula as this video has revictimized them in an already tragic situation as they continue to mourn her death. We are truly sorry.”
But the union noted that the bodycam footage captures only Auderer's side of the conversation: “There is much more detail and nuance that has not been made public yet.”
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