Seattle cop fired for hitting, killing woman in crosswalk appealing his termination
Jan 17, 2025, 11:58 AM | Updated: 11:58 am
A protester holds a sign calling for the conviction of Seattle Police officer Kevin Dave, who hit and killed Jaahnavi Kandula while driving a police cruiser in January, as people protest after body camera footage was released of a Seattle police officer joking about Kandula’s death, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, outside the Seattle Police Department’s West Precinct in Seattle. (Photo: Lindsey Wasson, AP)
(Photo: Lindsey Wasson, AP)
The Seattle police officer who was fired after he hit a woman while she was crossing a street with his assigned police vehicle, killing her instantly, is appealing the city’s decision to terminate him.
Seattle Police Department (SPD) Officer Kevin Dave officially filed the appeal with the Public Safety Civil Service Commission on Jan. 10. Dave’s appeal claims his termination violates Article XVI of the Charter of the City of Seattle, which states no civil service member can be suspended or fired except for a justifiable cause.
Then-interim police chief for the City of Seattle, Sue Rahr, said the department fired Kevin Dave after the Seattle Office of Police Accountability found he had violated four department policies. In an email obtained by KING 5, those violations were violating city laws, city policy and department policy, failing to modify their emergency response when appropriate, failing to be responsible for the safe operation of their police vehicle and failing to use emergency lights for emergency response appropriately.
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“I believe the officer did not intend to hurt anyone that night and that he was trying to get to a possible overdose victim as quickly as possible,” Rahr wrote in the email. “However, I cannot accept the tragic consequences of his dangerous driving. His positive intent does not mitigate the poor decision that caused the loss of human life and brought discredit to the Seattle Police Department.”
An investigation into Dave by the SPD determined he was heading to an emergency call when he struck Kandula as she was walking in a crosswalk on Dexter Avenue North and Thomas Street. The investigation found he was going 63 mph in a 25 mph zone when he hit Kandula, and as fast as 74 mph at one point. Kandula had the right of way when the accident occurred, the investigation confirmed.
King County prosecutors ruled last February they would not file criminal charges against Dave, finding there was no evidence he was impaired or driving recklessly. Meanwhile, Dave agreed to an eight-hour traffic safety course and 40 hours of community service.
More on Officer Kevin Dave: Prosecutors will not charge Seattle officer in death of Jaahnavi Kandula
Killing of Kandula led to international outrage over Officer Auderer’s joking
The deadly collision led to international outrage in the following weeks when remarks from another officer, Dan Auderer, were released, revealing joking comments about Kandula’s death.
“She is dead,” Auderer was heard saying on a phone call with Seattle Police Officers Guild (SPOG) President Mike Solan, according to captured bodycam footage. He said a check for $11,000 should just be written. “She was 26 anyway. She had limited value.”
Auderer was also heard laughing during the phone call and the recorded comments.
But Auderer did not know his body camera video had recorded the conversation, which he later admitted in a statement for Seattle’s Office of Police Accountability (OPA). In the statement, Auderer also said that he intended the comment to be interpreted “as a mockery of lawyers.”
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In addition to being an SPD officer, Auderer was the vice president of SPOG until Rahr fired him last summer.
The fallout from this incident is far from over, as Kandula’s family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit in King County Superior Court against both the City of Seattle and Dave. The family is alleging Kandula experienced severe emotional distress, pain and suffering before dying from her injuries. The investigation found her body was thrown approximately 140 feet after she was hit by the police vehicle. The family is seeking $110 million for damages, plus $11,000.
The lawsuit is scheduled to go to trial this September.
Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest and producer of the Seattle Seahawks podcast, The Reset with Gee Scott. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.
