Family of woman hit, killed by Seattle police sues city for $110M

The family of Jaahnavi Kandula, the 23-year-old woman hit and killed by a Seattle police officer in Jan. 2023, has sued the city for more than $110 million — plus $11,000.

SEATTLE - The family of Jaahnavi Kandula, the 23-year-old woman hit and killed by a Seattle police officer in Jan. 2023, has sued the city for more than $110 million — plus $11,000.

Kandula’s family filed a wrongful death, negligence and assault lawsuit against the City of Seattle and Seattle police officer Kevin Dave, who received a $5,000 ticket for second-degree negligent driving, which resulted in Kandula’s death. Dave is currently contesting the $5,000 fine.

Kandula was hit and killed by Dave’s patrol car while she was crossing a crosswalk on Dexter Ave N and Thomas St. According to an investigation, Dave was heading to an emergency call, driving 74 mph in a 25 mph zone with his lights on but no sirens on.

Kandula was thrown more than 100 ft and died of her injuries later that evening.

The lawsuit filed by Kandula’s family alleges she "experienced terror, severe emotional distress, and severe pain and suffering before dying."

The claims against Ofc. Kevin Dave

Additionally, they allege the police department negligently hired Dave, despite him being terminated by the Tucson Police Department for several "incidents of poor performance and misconduct during his 18-month probation."

One of these incidents included a "preventable collision," according to the lawsuit, and another collision which he failed to report.

Dave was under investigation by Tucson police in 2014 for suspicion of driving while impaired by narcotics, the lawsuit says, and that he hid his uninsurable vehicle from police, then lied when he was apprehended.

The lawsuit quotes his Tucson police personnel file: "My concern is that Officer Dave is not making sound decisions and may be distracted by other issues at work or off duty."

At the time of the collision, the lawsuit alleges that Dave did not have a valid Washington State driver's license. Kandula's family says Dave was overzealous in his response to an overdose call — they allege the 911 caller was "waiting outside the address for the police to arrive," suggesting that Dave speeding 74 mph through South Lake Union to reach the address was unnecessary and dangerous.

The claims against the City of Seattle

Kandula's family claims layers of negligence contributed to her tragic death.

At the time of the collision, Kandula was crossing the intersection of Dexter and Thomas, which had been under construction since at least 2013, only being completed in Spring 2024. The lawsuit says the intersection was marked off with concrete barriers and offered only limited visibility for people to see cars approaching the crosswalk.

Seattle's Department of Transportation acknowledged the dangers of the intersection, which has seen several traffic incidents during its reconstruction. The city now touts its revamped Dexter-Thomas intersection as its "first protected intersection."

"The speed at which Ofc. [Kevin Dave] was traveling did not allow [Kandula] or him sufficient time to detect, address and avoid a hazard that presented itself," wrote Seattle police Det. Schoenberg in his investigation of the incident, the lawsuit reads.

Det. Schoenberg also assigned Ofc. Daniel Auderer to investigate whether Ofc. Dave was impaired at the time of the incident.

Ofc. Daniel Auderer

Auderer arrived two-and-a-half hours after the collision to conduct a drug recognition test. According to the lawsuit, Auderer deviated from the test "when he failed to administer any type of breathalyzer or blood test to determine whether [Ofc.] Dave was impaired."

Instead, the lawsuit claims Auderer looked at Dave and determined "based upon his visual examination alone" that Dave was not impaired.

The additional $11,000 tacked onto the damages directly references comments Auderer made, captured on bodycam video, while on a call with Seattle Police Officers Guild President Mike Solan.

"Yeah just write a check — $11,000," he was captured laughing on video. "She was 26, anyway. She had limited value."

Auderer has maintained that he and Solan were merely engaging in "gallows humor," as police officers regularly have to deal with distressing, violent and deadly service calls. For his comments, Auderer was fired by interim police chief Sue Rahr, who called the remarks "vile" and said they "

Auderer has also filed a $20 million tort claim against the city, alleging he was targeted due to his role as Vice President in the Seattle Police Officers Guild.

The lawsuit alleges the city is liable for Kandula's pre-death suffering and injuries, caused by Ofc. Dave's negligence, misconduct, and assault and battery, in part caused by the city's failure to build, maintain and warn people of the dangers inherent to the Dexter-Thomas intersection.