Aiexpress – Seattle’s interim police chief announced Monday that she has fired a police officer who struck and killed an Indian graduate student in 2023 while responding to an overdose call.
Interim police chief Sue Rahr told staff in an email that she fired Kevin Dave after the Seattle Office of Police Accountability discovered he had broken four department standards, including one that requires him to be responsible for the safe operation of a patrol vehicle, according to the Seattle Times.
“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 added in an email. “I can’t accept the sad results of his reckless driving. His good intentions do not excuse the terrible decision that resulted in the loss of a human life and brought dishonor to the Seattle Police Department.”
The Associated Press sent a message to the Seattle Police Officers Guild, a police union, via the group’s website, which was not returned immediately. Attempts to reach Dave were unsuccessful.
Rahr’s announcement comes nearly a year after King County prosecutors indicated they would not seek felony charges against Dave, claiming insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Dave knowingly ignored safety in the crash that killed Jaahnavi Kandula.
Dave received a $5,000 penalty for negligent driving from the Seattle City Attorney’s Office. According to city prosecutors, Dave was driving at speeds up to 74 mph (119 kph) on a street with a speed limit of 25 mph (40 kph) before colliding with Kandula. Dave initially contested the ticket, but recently decided to pay it, complete an eight-hour traffic safety course within a year, and perform 40 hours of community service by September 30, according to municipal court records.
Kandula’s death sparked uproar, especially after a recording from another officer’s body-worn camera surfaced, in which the officer laughed and indicated Kandula’s life had “limited value” and that the city should “just write a check.” Diplomats from India requested a probe. The city’s civilian watchdog ruled that Officer Daniel Auderer’s comments, as a union representative, harmed the department’s reputation and undermined public trust. Auderer was eventually sacked.
Kandula’s family has launched a wrongful death case against both the city and Dave.
