A US police officer has been dismissed after making disparaging remarks about an Indian student’s life following her death last year.
The Seattle Police Department described Officer Daniel Auderer’s comments regarding Jaahnavi Kandula’s death as “vile” and “callous,” according to The Seattle Times.
Kandula, 23, was tragically struck and killed in January by another police vehicle while she was crossing a street near her university.
Responding to the incident, Auderer was recorded laughing and referring to Kandula as a “regular person,” suggesting the city should “just write a cheque” in compensation.
The remarks were captured on his body camera during a phone call with a colleague.
“But she is dead,” Auderer remarked, followed by laughter. “No, it’s a regular person. Yeah, just write a cheque,” he repeated, laughing again.
“Eleven thousand dollars. She was 26, anyway. She had limited value,” he added.
The video quickly went viral on social media, causing widespread outrage.
On Wednesday, Seattle Police Department’s interim chief, Sue Rahr, announced Auderer’s termination via a department-wide email.
Rahr stated that his actions had brought shame to the department and the policing profession.
She emphasized that his “cruel and callous laughter” and the pain it caused Kandula’s family could not outweigh his positive reputation among colleagues and his years of service.
“For me to allow the officer to remain on our force would only bring further dishonour to the entire department. For that reason, I am going to terminate his employment,” Rahr declared.
Following the incident, Auderer was placed under investigation.
The Office of Police Accountability, responsible for investigating police misconduct, recommended his dismissal for unprofessional conduct and biased recorded statements, reported The Seattle Times.
Jaahnavi Kandula was a graduate student at Northeastern University in Seattle.
Reports from US media indicate that the officer who struck her was driving at 74mph (119km/h), propelling Kandula more than 100ft (30m).