Seattle, Jaahnavi Kandula Family Agree to $29 Million Settlement

Seattle reached a $29 million settlement with the family of Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old graduate student from India who a speeding police officer struck and killed in January 2023.

The agreement resolves civil claims brought by Kandula’s relatives against the city, while separate criminal and administrative decisions involving the officer unfolded on their own tracks in the months that followed.

Officer Kevin Dave hit Kandula on January 23, 2023, as she crossed in a marked crosswalk near Dexter Avenue North and Thomas Street in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood.

Dave drove 74 mph in a 25-mph zone while responding to a drug overdose call, using emergency lights and a siren that was “chirping” at intersections rather than running continuously.

The collision threw Kandula’s body 138 feet, drawing public attention that later intensified as the case moved through investigations, disciplinary actions and a lawsuit.

Kandula studied information systems in a master’s program at Northeastern University’s Seattle campus, with an expected graduation date of December 2023.

Her death became a national flashpoint in part because of what emerged afterward: scrutiny of the driving that preceded the crash, questions about accountability, and a separate body-camera controversy involving another officer’s remarks.

The city’s settlement with Kandula’s family totals $29 million, and the parties filed a notice of settlement in King County Superior Court.

Roughly $20 million of the settlement is expected to be covered by the city’s insurance, with the remainder paid directly by the municipality.

Civil settlements typically end a lawsuit without a trial verdict on the underlying allegations, and they do not, by themselves, amount to a criminal finding against an individual.

City Attorney Erika Evans linked the payment to the gravity of the loss, saying: “Jaahnavi Kandula’s death was heartbreaking, and the city hopes this financial settlement brings some sense of closure to the Kandula family. Jaahnavi Kandula’s life mattered. It mattered to her family, her friends and to our community.”

Kandula’s family filed a lawsuit in 2024 alleging wrongful death, negligence and assault, and seeking more than $110 million in damages.

The complaint alleged Kandula experienced terror, severe emotional distress, and pain and suffering before her death.

The notice of settlement in King County Superior Court signaled that the parties had reached an agreement in principle while moving toward final resolution of the civil case.

The case’s major milestones stretched from the January 2023 crash through prosecutorial review, the family’s 2024 lawsuit, and later employment actions and litigation tied to the fallout.

Criminal accountability took a different course than the civil case.

The King County Prosecutor’s Office declined to file criminal charges against Dave in February 2024, concluding there was insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he acted with recklessness or criminal negligence under Washington State law.

Instead, Dave received a citation for second-degree negligent driving and a $5,000 fine.

Seattle Police Department discipline followed later.

Interim Police Chief Sue Rahr fired Dave on January 6, 2025, citing four specific policy violations: failing to follow department policy, not activating emergency lights, failing to modify speed while responding to an emergency call, and not operating his vehicle safely.

Public anger over Kandula’s death deepened after body camera footage surfaced showing Officer Daniel Auderer laughing and making remarks about the death during a phone call with union president Mike Solan.

Auderer served as vice president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild, and the recording prompted outrage well beyond Seattle as the language spread and became part of the public debate over police culture and oversight.

In the footage, Auderer said Kandula had “limited value” and suggested the city should “just write a check” for $11,000.

Seattle fired Auderer in July 2024.

He later filed a wrongful termination lawsuit and claimed his remarks were “gallows humor” intended to criticize how attorneys would respond to the death.

The episode added a second line of controversy to an already high-profile case, with the civil lawsuit, the prosecutor’s decision not to charge Dave, and the department’s disciplinary steps all unfolding against continuing public demands for change.

Kandula’s death sparked national outrage and renewed calls for police reforms, and local advocates pushed for measures they said would create clearer rules and stronger accountability.

Indian American Community Services (IACS) called for broader policy changes, tying its demands to the wider questions raised by the incident rather than limiting them to individual firings.

Lalita Uppala of IACS said: “It’s not fair to say you fire an officer and that takes care of things. That’s not what we were asking for. We were asking for clarity and guidelines.”

Diplomats from India sought an investigation into the incident, adding a diplomatic dimension because Kandula was an international student whose death reverberated far beyond Seattle.

The settlement now puts a dollar figure on the city’s civil exposure in the case, but it does not rewrite the sequence of outcomes that shaped public debate: no criminal charges from prosecutors, a traffic citation and fine, termination of the officer who struck Kandula, and the separate firing and lawsuit involving the recorded remarks.

For Kandula’s family, the civil case alleged profound suffering in the moments before her death, and the settlement brings the city’s agreement to pay $29 million, with most expected to come from insurance and the rest from Seattle itself.