Seattle police officer who struck and killed graduate student from India won’t face felony charges
SEATTLE — Prosecutors in Washington state said Wednesday they will not file felony charges against a Seattle police officer who struck and killed a Native American graduate student while responding to an overdose call — a case that drew widespread attention after another officer was recorded making insensitive comments about this.
Officer Kevin Dave was driving 70 mph (119 km/h) on a street with a 25 mph (40 km/h) speed limit in a police SUV before hitting 23-year-old Jaahnavi Kandula in a crosswalk on January 23, 2023.
In a memo to Seattle police on Wednesday, the King County Prosecutor’s Office noted that Dave had his emergency lights on, that other pedestrians reported hearing his siren, and that Kandula appeared to try to run through the intersection after seeing his vehicle approaching. She may also have been wearing wireless earbuds that could have reduced her hearing, they noted.
For these reasons, a vehicular homicide charge was not warranted: “There is insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Ofc. Dave consciously ignored safety,” the memo said.
It remains possible that prosecutors could file lesser charges, such as negligent driving. Tim Robinson, a spokesman for the Seattle City Attorney’s Office, said Wednesday that the case had not been referred for possible felony charges, and that Seattle police did not immediately respond to an emailed inquiry about whether they the case could refer to that case. office.
Kandula’s death sparked outrage, especially after a recording from another officer’s body-worn camera surfaced last September, in which that officer laughs and suggests that Kandula’s life had “limited value” and that the city should “just give a check unsubscribe’.
Diplomats from India and local protesters called for an investigation. The city’s civilian watchdog, the Office of Police Accountability, found last month that comments from Officer Daniel Auderer — the vice president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild — damaged the department’s reputation and undermined public trust in a scale that is difficult to measure.
Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz is considering Auderer’s punishment.
The comments were “derogatory, disparaging and inhumane,” wrote Gino Betts Jr., director of the accountability office.
In a statement to the office, Auderer acknowledged that his comments — during a phone call with police union president Mike Solan — sounded insensitive, but that they were intended to mock a justice system that would try to place value on Kandula’s life .
King County Prosecutor Leesa Manion called Kandula’s death heartbreaking, but she said Auderer’s “terrible” comments did not change the legal analysis of whether Dave should be charged.
“It is the Office of Police Accountability that has responsibility for the disciplinary investigation and proceedings regarding Officer Auderer’s comment,” rather than the district attorney’s office, Manion said.
The Seattle Police Officers Guild did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. The union has said the comments were “highly insensitive” but also taken out of context.
Kandula was a graduate student at Northeastern University’s campus in Seattle.