Jaahnavi Kandula death: Indian-origin lawmakers urge Seattle Police to expedite probe

Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, other lawmakers and community members have urged the Seattle Police to pursue its investigation into the tragic death of Indian student Jaahnavi Kandula with the seriousness it demands.

“Jaahnavi Kandula’s death was a horrible tragedy, and the scale of her loss should not be diminished or mocked by anyone,” Krishnamoorthi said in response to the recording of a Seattle Police officer laughing about the death of Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old Indian graduate student who was killed by a police car travelling at 74 miles per hour in a 25 mile per hour zone.

“The recording of a Seattle Police officer making light of her death and questioning the value of her life is disgusting and unacceptable. I urge the Seattle Police Department to pursue its investigation into this matter with the seriousness it demands,” Krishnamoorthi said on Thursday.

Jaahnavi, a youth student at Washington's Northeastern University was struck at a pedestrian crossing on the night of January 23, 2023.

In the video, Daniel Auderer, who is captured on body camera while discussing the fatal collision, can be heard saying, "Yeah, just write a check. $11,000. She was 26 anyway, she had limited value."

Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal strongly condemned the incident.

“Jaahnavi Kandula was killed by a speeding police car. Then, police officers joked about her death and devalued her life. I’m sick to my stomach. This is exactly what happens when we normalise xenophobia and racism. It needs to stop,” the Democratic lawmaker said.

Kshama Sawant, a member of the Seattle City Council has called for an independent elected community oversight with full powers over the police following the incident.

"Working people need to demand an independent, public investigation into this outrage," the Indian-American political leader said in a post shared on X.

Sawant said that the “so-called Office of Professional Accountability has singularly failed to hold Seattle Police accountable”, noting that “cops overseeing cops will never work'.

"We need independently elected community oversight with full powers over the police. But to win this, working people will need to organise independently of the Democratic Party," the 49-year-old politician and economist said.

She also shared a picture which mentioned that Auderer has been the subject of 18 investigations since 2014, and is involved in lawsuits costing the city over $1.7 million, with not one of them having resulted in him being fired, let alone facing legal consequences.

Council member Tammy J Morales (District 2 – South Seattle) is calling for Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz to take immediate action after the video came out.

“After every high-profile incident of police abuse, we’re told to wait – wait for a six-month long investigation or a years-long review process. We’re done waiting. I’m calling on Chief Diaz to tell the Council and community, in real terms, how he plans to regain control of his department and fix the culture,” said Morales.

“As the department and Seattle Police Officer’s Guild ask for more funding for recruitment and hiring, it’s becoming clear the top deterrent to attracting high-quality officers may be the culture of the department itself,” she said.

In a unanimous resolution, the National Federation of Indian American Associations (NFIA) called upon all relevant authorities to prioritise the investigation, community engagement, and respect for the rights and dignity of all individuals, the victims and the community in suffering and grief.

NFIA also appreciated India’s Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu for strongly raising the issue at the highest level in Washington.

Indian American Impact in a statement said that it is appalled to see shocking footage of a Seattle police officer belittling the killing of an Indian woman by another police officer, saying her life “had limited value”.

“We hope the officer is held accountable and Jaahnavi Kandula’s family receives justice,” it said.

Meanwhile, demanding justice for Kandula and the resignation of two Seattle police officers, more than 200 people from different communities held a rally at an intersection in Seattle where she was struck and killed by a speeding police patrol car.

They called for accountability for the officer who killed her and for a police union leader’s comments about the crash, which some described as “disgusting” and “abhorrent.”

Participants at the rally in South Lake Union called for the resignation of Auderer and the officer who struck Kandula, Dave.

Speakers at the rally criticised the police system, saying it is built on white supremacy, and the criminalising and undervaluing of the lives of Black and Indigenous people and other people of colour, the report added.

Signs read “Jail killer cops,” “Justice for Jaahnavi,” and “End police terror.” People living in nearby apartments came to join the crowd.