No Criminal Case Against US Cop Who Killed Indian While Driving At 120 kmph

Despite acknowledging the impact on communities both locally and "across the world", a US prosecutor claimed a lack of "sufficient evidence" to pursue criminal charges.

Jaahnavi Kandula, a 23-year-old Indian student, was killed after being hit by a speeding police vehicle in the US state of Washington on January 23 last year. After a year of legal battles, court proceedings, statements from both the Indian and US governments, and calls for accountability, the police officer behind the wheels of the vehicle that ran over Ms Kandula will walk free, at least for now. 

Despite acknowledging the impact on communities both locally and "across the world", a US prosecutor claimed a lack of "sufficient evidence" to pursue criminal charges against Seattle police officer Kevin Dave, who was driving at 120 kmph when his cop car hit Ms Kandula, a Master's student in Seattle from Andhra Pradesh. 

In bodycam footage released by Seattle Police, officer Daniel Auderer, who was not involved in the collision but was present at the scene, callously laughed about the deadly crash before dismissing the need for a criminal investigation and making insensitive comments about Ms Kandula's age and value.