Seattle Officer Fired for Comments at Crash Sues City for $20M

Former Seattle Police Department Officer Daniel Auderer has filed a tort claim against the City of Seattle for $20-million dollars after his firing.

In the claim Auderer says SPD leaked false information about disciplinary proceedings as well as personal information. He claims he was wrongfully terminated and the decision to fire him was retaliatory, KIRO reports.

In July Auderer was fired by Interim Seattle Police Chief Sue Rahr after Auderer was recorded on his own body camera joking and laughing about the 2023 officer involved fatal pedestrian crash that killed 23-year-old Jaahnavi Kandula. Auderer was on a phone call with Seattle Police Officers Guild President Mike Solan. Auderer was the vice president of SPOG at the time.

In that conversation, Auderer can be heard laughing as he referred to Kandula as “a regular person,” going on to say, “just write a check -- $11,000, she was 26 anyway, she had limited value.”

The police department and the city have not commented on the lawsuit.