“Stop shooting her!” one deputy could be heard shouting at other officers, after 15-year-old Savannah Graziano — who was reported “abducted” after her father allegedly killed her mom — was asked to walk toward authorities following a high speed chase and shootout.
Newly-released video shows the moment a 15-year-old girl, following instructions of a deputy from the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department, was gunned down by other responding officers.
The incident, involving teen Savannah Graziano and her father Anthony Graziano, happened in September 2022 and ended in both of their deaths — following an alleged murder, an Amber Alert, high-speed chase and shootout.
Footage released by the Sheriff’s Department this week, following requests under the California Public Records Act, laid out the current, official timeline of events and includes 9-1-1 calls, dispatch audio, helicopter footage and witness accounts from the day in question. Authorities said the info in the video is still considered “preliminary,” and could change “in the course of investigation.”
While the Los Angeles Times has posted the full video, The Guardian was the first to request and publish it. Below is some of the footage — Warning: It’s disturbing.
The search for Savannah began on September 27, after an Amber Alert was issued for the teen out of concern she had been “abducted” by her father. Anthony was believed to have shot and killed her mother, Tracy, near her Fontana home, as well as firing at a father and child nearby.
Authorities received 9-1-1 calls regarding the pair the following day, after Savannah was spotted at a gas station and their vehicle was seen headed toward Barstow. Since nobody with the California Highway Patrol was available, it was the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department who responded and caught up with Anthony’s vehicle. Per authorities, he was driving “at a high rate of speed” and, once they caught up with the truck, “the first of many shots were fired from the pickup truck at pursuing deputies.”
During the pursuit, one deputy and a witness both reported shots being fired from the passenger window, while someone in the Sheriff’s Department helicopter reported shots from the driver’s side. Per the department, “This aspect of the incident is still under investigation.”
The pursuit ended when Graziano pulled a U-turn and tried to exit the freeway using an on-ramp. When he couldn’t get up the embankment, he backed up and eventually the truck came to a stop.
Savannah can then be seen in helicopter video getting out of the passenger side. Per authorities, she was wearing tactical gear and a helmet. After getting low to the ground, she’s seen getting up and moving toward a deputy, who can be heard on his radio telling her to come toward him. It’s then that she’s shot; the footage blurs out her body.
Clermont County Sheriff’s Office/Facebook
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“Deputies at a distance in a higher location with differing fields of view, saw a person leave the vehicle and move toward other deputies,” the Sheriff’s Department said in audio accompanying the video. “They discharged their service weapons as the person stood up and moved toward the closest deputy. That deputy, who could see it was the passenger, was calling her over.”
After she was hit, someone could be heard saying, “Oh no,” over the radio.
The deputy who called Savannah out of the vehicle can be heard on audio saying, “Passenger, get out! Get out! Get out! Come here! Come Here! Come to me! Come to me! Come, come, come, come. Walk! Stop!”
He then shouts at other officers, “Stop shooting her! He’s in the car! Stop! She’s okay, he’s in the car. Stop!”
The Sheriff’s Department acknowledged the deputy was trying to alert “other deputies that the person who exited the truck was the passenger and for them to stop firing, but it was too late.”
Savannah was taken to the hospital, but died of her injuries. Her father was pronounced dead at the scene. Per authorities, “multiple” firearms, ammunition, flash bang and smoke grenades and body armor were found at the scene. The California Department of Justice is currently investigating the incident, while the Sheriff’s Department has launched its own internal review.
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At the time of the shooting, authorities initially said it’s possible Savannah was involved “in some of the fire exchanged.” They also said they were investigating whether Savannah was shot by deputies, her father or both. Per the Sheriff’s Department in this new update, both Savannah and her father died after being “struck by deputy rounds.”
“There needs to be better training so that unarmed people aren’t killed,” Savannah’s uncle told The Guardian. “Hopefully this video can be used for training – something has to be done differently. She didn’t have to die.”
“You can tell [one deputy] was really trying to save her, so it’s just unfortunate that there was some kind of miscommunication,” he added, though the outlet claimed the uncle also ultimately put the blame for Savannah’s death on her “abusive and manipulative” father.
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