Video shows reportedly abducted teen was killed by sheriff's gunfire as she followed instructions

Newly released video shows the chaos unfolding during a September 2022 high-speed desert pursuit and subsequent shootout with San Bernardino County sheriff's deputies that left a murder suspect and his 15-year-old daughter, who was the subject of an Amber Alert, dead.

More than a year after the deadly chain of events that ended with 15-year-old Savannah Graziano dead at a hospital of her gunshot wounds, the video and recordings answered one of the most pressing questions that lingered after the shootout: who killed her?

Immediately after the shooting, the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department said it was unclear if Savannah died after being shot by deputies, her father, or both.

The heavily narrated releases make clear that she was killed by deputy gunfire even as she followed a deputy's instructions to come toward them.

The video released this week includes footage from a California Highway Patrol helicopter and a patrol car dashcam. Audio from a deputy's belt recording captured the sound of the deputy shouting to Savannah and other deputies, the sheriff's department said.

In that recording of a deputy near Savannah after his father's truck had become incapacitated on the side of the freeway, he can be heard saying “Passenger, get out!” as gunfire is heard in the background. The deputy then shouts: “Come to me! Come, come, come. Walk, walk, walk.”

Video from a CHP helicopter above the scene shows Savannah outside of the truck and making her way toward the deputies, who had already engaged in a gunfight with her father as they chased him.

The deputy can be heard shouting, “Hey! Stop! Stop shooting her! He’s in the car!”

Savannah can then be seen in the CHP video appearing to fall to the ground. She later died at a hospital.

What led to the car chase?

The shootout happened Sept. 27, 2022, a day after an Amber Alert was issued for 15-year-old Savannah Graziano.

The chain of events that led to the deadly shooting began the day before, when the teen's mother was shot by her estranged husband, and Savannah's father, Anthony Graziano near a school in Fontana.

Tracy Martinez, Savannah's mother, was able to identify her killer to authorities before she died. Witnesses reported that Savannah had been in the backseat of her father's truck at the time of the attack, and an Amber Alert was issued and Southern California law enforcement agencies went on high alert.

The chase began after a clerk at a gas station called to report a sighting of Savannah. Deputies encountered the pickup near Barstow and the chase reached speeds of more than 100 mph before continuing on the 15 Freeway into Hesperia.

Hesperia is about 35 miles north of where Martinez was shot and killed.

During the pursuit, shots were fired at the deputies from Graziano's pickup truck, which eventually became disabled after he drove off the highway. Several rounds pierced a patrol car's windshield.

Graziano died in the truck during the ensuing shootout. Savannah, who authorities said was wearing tactical gear and a helmet, was shot as she moved toward deputies during the barrage of gunfire.

"At the conclusion of the pursuit, there was an extensive exchange of gunfire," the sheriff's department said in a statement released with the video. "Both Graziano and Savannah were struck by deputy rounds and died of their injuries."

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department released the audio and video clips, including the heavily produced and narrated 15-minute video, on Friday in response to public records requests made by several media outlets.

What happened after the shootout?

Video from the helicopter appears to show Savannah kneeling on the ground before moving toward the deputy as he called out to her. The sounds of gunfire also are captured on the recording.

"You can hear him calling her over and telling other deputies that the person who exited the truck was the passenger and for them to stop firing, but it was too late," the sheriff's department said in its statement. "Deputies immediately began medical aid on Savannah and she was transported to the hospital where, tragically, she died of her injuries."

Investigators later searched the family's Fontana home, which Graziano and his daughter had moved out of a few weeks earlier, and Graziano's storage unit.

Inside the storage pod they found AR-15-style rifles, handguns, thousands of rounds of ammunition, smoke grenades and other tactical gear, according to authorities.

CJ Wyatt, Savannah's uncle and Tracy Martinez's borther, told The Guardian that Anthony Graziano was “abusive and manipulative.” He said the father and daughter had been living in Graziano's truck in the weeks before his sister was killed.

Other questions remain, including whether Savannah also shot at sheriff's deputies during the chase, as was reported by at least one witness.

NBC Los Angeles reached out to Savannah's family and the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department for comments. The case remains under investigation by the state attorney's general office, which requires an investigation into all deadly shootings involving law enforcement.

On Tuesday, the sheriff's department issued a statement about the critical incident video.

"The DOJ investigation is ongoing, and we are unable to release further details of the investigation," Sheriff Shannon Dicus said. "As part of this investigation, the DOJ requested materials and evidence from the Department. In April 2023 the Department encountered a ransomware attack that delayed providing DOJ the requested information. As of March 29, 2024, all the requested information has been provided.

"My hope is that this video will be watched in its entirety and provide insight into the unfortunate events that unfolded that day. There has been speculation and misrepresentations about this case, and I would ask the public to allow the DOJ to complete its independent investigation before reaching a conclusion."