What the end of SPD's bodycam analysis program reveals about AI and policing

It was a comment so crass, it defied belief.

On Jan. 23, body camera footage captured Seattle police officer and Police Officers Guild vice president Daniel Auderer joking about the death of Jaahnavi Kandula during a call with Mike Sola, the union president.

"Yeah, just write a check — $11,000," Aurderer said.

"She had limited value."

Auderer made those comments the day after Kandula, 23, was struck and killed by Seattle police officer Kevin Dave while walking in a crosswalk. Auderer was involved in evaluating whether Dave, who had been driving at over 70 mph in a 25 mph zone, had been impaired at the time of the collision. The footage capturing Auderer's comments about Kandula sparked outrage across Seattle, and has received national attention.

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It’s also raised alarms in some corners over the amount of information captured on body cameras. Since Jaahnavi’s death, the Seattle Police Department has taken action that may make this kind of content harder to find.

An investigation published by OpenVallejo.org found that 15 days after the phone call between Auderer and Solan, the Seattle Police Department canceled its contract for an artificial intelligence service that analyzes body camera footage. The service, called Truleo, has the ability to flag certain words and phrases for leadership to review.

RELATED: Seattle police ended body camera analysis after footage caught officer mocking woman's death

Soundside host Libby Denkmann caught up with Laurence Du Sault, the reporter behind the investigation, to understand what the cancelation of the Truleo contract could mean for Auderer, and the investigation into his conduct.

Listen to the full interview with Laurence Du Sault by clicking the play button at the top of the story.