SEATTLE, WA - Daniel Auderer, a former Seattle police officer, has filed a lawsuit for $20 million alleging that SPD leaders leaked false information about him pertaining to "wrongfully initiated disciplinary proceedings," even leaking his personal data and home address.
Auderer was terminated from the department by Chief Sue Rahr after he allegedly made comments captured on officer-worn body cameras went public. He is arguing that he was wrongfully terminated and that this was in part due to his role in union leadership.
Auderer additionally cited personal reputational harm, as well as mental pain and suffering.
Rahr wrote in a departmental email in 2024 that Auderer’s actions “have brought shame on the Seattle Police Department and our entire profession, making the job of every police officer more difficult.” Auderer was the elected vice president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild at the time of the incident.
According to King5 News, the incident in question took place on Jan. 23, 2023, when Auderer was dispatched to the site of a fatal accident involving an SPD cruiser and a civilian, Jaahnavi Kandula, 23, who was struck and killed while crossing a road in Seattle's South Lake Union neighborhood. The driver was identified as Officer Kevin Dave, who was cited with a traffic violation.
In the officer-worn bodycam footage, Auderer is overheard in a phone conversation telling Union President Mike Solan, "But she is dead." He added, "She was 26 anyway, she had limited value." He would explain later in a letter that he wasn't making light of Kandula's death, but rather mocking the callous nature of the legal system.
As reported by The New York Post, Auderer, then-49, suggested in the conversation with Solan, which he was unaware was recorded, that the city should write a check to Kandula's family for $11,000. Both Solan and Auderer have maintained that their conversation involved union business and was taken out of context and that they were both voicing disdain for the legal system that arbitrarily assigns monetary value to human life.
In a statement released to Fox13, Rahr wrote, "At the root of this case lies an extremely difficult judgment call of how to fairly balance ‘intent versus impact.’" She observed that even despite the "gallows humor" of the comments, the bodycam video going public incurred "immeasurable damage to the public trust of police in the Seattle community, across the nation, and around the world."
Joel Merkel, co-chair of the Community Police Commission wrote, "Chief Rahr made the right and clear call to terminate Det. Auderer. A community member’s tragic death is never a laughing matter. There is no room in our community or policing anywhere for officers who have the capacity to conduct themselves the way Auderer did on that call with SPOG President Mike Solan. Our hearts are with Ms. Kandula’s family, and we hope this helps them heal. The CPC is also hopeful this is Chief Rahr’s first step in firmly addressing cultural issues at SPD," according to KOMO News.
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