Video shows California police shooting teen they were supposed to rescue
Radio traffic from the helicopter apparently warns authorities that Savannah is there.
Los Angeles, United States:
Recently released video shows US police shooting and killing a kidnapped teenage girl they were tasked with rescuing in a chaotic incident on a busy California highway.
15-year-old Savannah Graziano was shot as a deputy called her away from her gun-wielding father, who had killed her mother and kidnapped her daughter the day before.
The episode unfolded in September 2022 when authorities in San Bernardino County, east of Los Angeles, began pursuing a vehicle that Anthony Graziano was driving with Savannah in the passenger seat.
The footage, filmed by a California Highway Patrol helicopter and released Friday, shows the pickup truck speeding at 110 miles (175 kilometers) per hour, with several shots fired at officers from inside Graziano’s vehicle.
The pursuit ended when Graziano went the wrong way on a freeway entrance ramp and stopped in scrubland surrounded by police vehicles.
The footage released Friday shows Savannah getting out of the car and walking toward an officer, who can be heard calling her over in another recording.
Radio traffic from the helicopter apparently warns authorities that Savannah is there.
“The girl’s out. The girl’s out. Okay, the girl’s out, guys. The woman… is out. She’s out on the passenger side,” a male voice says.
The footage shows Savannah crouching on the ground for several seconds and then getting up and walking toward a group of police officers.
The sound of a gunshot is clearly heard in the video and Savannah then fades in when a voice on the radio says “Oh no.”
Audio captured by a microphone worn by an officer on the ground records him calling Savannah.
“Come to me! Come, come, come…come, come, come,” he says, as heavy gunfire is heard.
“Hey! Stop! Stop shooting him,” he says to his coworkers. “He’s in the car!”
Following this statement several shots can be heard.
The video, which was released by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Coroner, describes the moment.
“You can hear him calling to him and telling other deputies that the person who got out of the truck was the passenger and that they should stop firing, but it was too late.”
The teenager was declared dead at a local hospital.
His father was declared dead at the scene. Police said several weapons and body armor items were found in the pickup, along with hundreds of rounds of ammunition.
The names of the officers involved have not been released.
The incident is being investigated by the California Department of Justice (DOJ).
San Bernardino Sheriff Shannon Dickus said Tuesday that his department has been transparent following the incident.
“My hope is that this video will be watched in its entirety and that information will be gained about the unfortunate events that occurred that day,” he said.
“I would ask the public to allow the DOJ to complete its independent investigation before reaching any conclusions.”
The video was released just weeks after deputies with the same sheriff’s department shot and killed a 15-year-old autistic boy who struggled with mental health issues.
Both incidents have exposed the use of force by the police.
Violent encounters involving the public and police are not uncommon in the United States.
A report from the Washington Post newspaper shows that more than 1,100 people have been shot and killed by officers across the country in the past 12 months.
The statistics are not official because police departments are not required to report incidents to the federal government.
Firearms take thousands of lives every year in the United States, a country with more guns than people.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)