Seattle police officer appears to joke, laugh about woman fatally struck by patrol car
Seattle police released bodycam video of an officer who appeared to laugh while speaking to a colleague about a pedestrian who was killed when she was struck by a speeding patrol car. (Credit: Seattle Police Department)
A fired Seattle police officer is suing the city for wrongful termination and damages after he was terminated for bodycam video showing what appears to be him joking and laughing after a woman was struck and killed by a patrol car.
Former Seattle police officer Daniel Auderer filed a $20 million tort complaint against the city of Seattle for damages weeks after he was fired for his behavior following the death of Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old Northeastern University student.
Auderer claims harm to his personal reputation, wrongful termination and mental pain and suffering. He is also claiming lost wages of $200,000 per year.
SEATTLE POLICE PATROL VEHICLE FATALLY STRIKES 23-YEAR-OLD WOMAN
Seattle police department patch. (GENNA MARTIN/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
Following his comments and recent firing after an investigation, Auderer maintained that his comments were taken out of context.
In the complaint, Auderer said in part, "Seattle PD leaked false information concerning wrongfully initiated disciplinary proceedings as well as my personal information."
He also argued that he was wrongfully terminated because of his leadership role in the Seattle Police Officers Guild.
"SPD then wrongfully terminated me. This was retaliatory, at least due to my union leadership."
In a statement to FOX 13, Seattle interim police Chief Sue Rahr defended her decision to terminate Auderer.
"At the root of this case lies an extremely difficult judgment call of how to fairly balance ‘intent versus impact,'" Rahr said. "The actions [of] this individual police officer have brought shame on the Seattle Police Department and our entire profession, making the job of every police officer more difficult."
A Seattle police officer has been fired for making callous remarks about the death of a graduate student from India after she was struck by another officer’s vehicle in a crosswalk last year. (Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times via AP, File)
The 23-year-old woman was killed after a Seattle police car driven by another officer hit her.
In the body camera footage, previously released by the Seattle Police Department, Auderer is heard referring to Kandula as "a regular person and saying to, "just write a check — $11,000, she was 26 anyway, she had limited value."
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Seattle Police Department and the city of Seattle for comment.
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