This undated photo provided by the Fontana Police Department shows kidnapped teen Savannah Graziano.Associated Press
A teenage girl kidnapped by her father complies with a sheriff’s deputy’s instructions and surrenders during a shootout on a Southern California highway when another deputy shoots him, according to recently released video and audio. It is said that it was.
On September 27, 2022, Savannah Graziano, 15, was shot and killed as she ran toward San Bernardino County Sheriff’s deputies during a hail of gunfire. Her father, Anthony Graziano, 45, was also shot and killed.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department released audio and video clips Friday in response to public records requests from The Associated Press and other news organizations, including a carefully produced and narrated 15-minute video. Deputies did not have body-worn cameras, but video footage was recorded by a sheriff’s helicopter and a witness’ dashboard camera.
Before Savannah and her father were shot and killed, police pursued Graziano’s pickup truck for about 70 miles (110 kilometers), including along Highway 15. A helicopter crew following the chase reported shots being fired from the driver’s side. The other shots were fired from the passenger side, according to police and a passing motorist. It is unclear who fired the shots from the pickup truck.
The truck and the deputies’ vehicle stopped on a desert interstate east of Los Angeles in Hesperia, about 35 miles (55 kilometers) north of Fontana, where her father shot and killed his estranged wife and mother the day before.
According to the video, Savannah Graziano was just a stone’s throw from safety when she was killed.
A deputy hiding behind the sheriff’s SUV repeatedly yelled, “Passengers, get out!” and “Come to me, come to me!”
The teenager, wearing tactical gear and a helmet, got out of the pickup truck from the passenger side and ran toward the deputy, crouched on the ground for a moment and continued to give commands.
But as she rose from her crouch and began walking toward the deputy, others opened fire from on high. The deputy yelled, “Stop!” Stop shooting her girlfriend! He’s in the car! Stop! “
The deputy’s screams were not broadcast over the radio, but the audio was recorded on the deputy’s belt recorder, the sheriff’s office said.
After the boy was shot, a deputy in the helicopter could be heard over the radio saying, “Oh, no.”
For months, officials did not say whether it was Savannah Graziano’s father or the deputy who killed her. In the new video, a narrator says the Grazianos “died of their injuries after being struck by a secondary bullet.”
The agency has not released autopsy reports for the boy, his father or his mother, Tracy Martinez, nor has it released the names of the agents involved. An agency spokesperson responded to a request for comment Tuesday.
Four deputy vehicles were struck by gunfire during the chase, and deputies seized multiple firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition from the pickup truck, as well as flash-bang grenades, smoke grenades, bulletproof vests and tactical helmets, the department said. It was confiscated.
Savannah Graziano was unarmed when she was shot.
The state Department of Justice, which is investigating the shooting, declined further comment, referring media inquiries to a 2022 news release. State law requires the department to investigate shootings by police officers that result in the death of unarmed civilians.
Authorities say Savannah Graziano witnessed her mother’s murder from the back seat of her father’s pickup truck but did not try to help. Her father jumped out with a handgun and fired several shots at Martinez near the elementary school during the morning dismissal, forcing students and parents to dive for cover. Anthony Graziano also shot his father and son near the school.
Fontana police said Anthony Graziano had left home one to two months before the murder because the couple was divorcing. Savannah Graziano left with her father, and her younger brother remained with her mother.
Police said Anthony Graziano and his daughter had been living out of a pickup truck and a hotel for weeks before the violence. There were no reports of domestic violence or child abuse.
Authorities issued an Amber Alert for Savannah Graziano after the shooting in Fontana, but authorities later questioned whether she willingly went with her father. Friday’s video did not mention that, only that an Amber Alert had been issued.
