Text messages exchanged by Mackenzie Shirilla and her father are drawing huge attention online, as a Netflix true crime documentary revives public focus on her case.
In the early hours of July 30 2022, Shirilla — then 17 — was behind the wheel of a 2018 Toyota Camry in Strongsville, Ohio, after attending a graduation party and stopping to see a friend. With her in the car were her boyfriend Dominic Russo, 21, and friend Davion Flanagan, 19.
At around 5.30am, CCTV footage showed the vehicle rapidly speeding up before slamming into a brick wall at more than 100 miles per hour.
Shirilla survived and was flown to hospital with serious injuries and multiple fractures. Russo and Flanagan were pronounced dead at the scene.
Roughly four months later, Shirilla — described as an influencer — was arrested. Authorities filed multiple charges against her, including two counts of aggravated murder and one count of drug trafficking.
After a bench trial (where a judge rules on guilt rather than a jury), she was convicted on several counts and given a life sentence, with the possibility of parole after 15 years.
She is being held at the Ohio Reformatory for Women, and her parole eligibility is expected in late 2037.
Since the release of Netflix’s The Crash, renewed interest in the case has intensified.
In response to that attention, the Strongsville Police Department has recently made case materials public, including text messages between Shirilla and her father, Steve Shirilla — with some of the exchanges referencing ‘warm milk’.
Speaking on the True Crime This Week podcast on Wednesday (27 May), Steve Shirilla said his daughter — dubbed the ‘Hell on Wheels’ killer — felt ‘remorse’ about the deaths.
Discussing Shirilla, now 21, he also insisted he does not believe the crash was intentional.
“She was 17. She’s a dumb kid. She didn’t do it on purpose,” he told podcast host and journalist James Renner.
“I’ve asked her…’Did you do this on purpose?’ And she’s going, ‘No’,” he alleged.
“And I would think if my daughter was that mad, that mad at that boy to want to kill him that way, Davion would have never been in the car [also]. … That makes no sense.”
Separately, messages attributed to Steve and Shirilla have been circulating widely on social media.
The Tab reported that on March 23 2020, Steve text his daughter saying: “I do love you, and I did not say anything about Dom when you were leaving with Mom. Please let them help you at the hospital.”
Two days after that, another message followed: “Come home, please. I love you. Your choice.”
On March 27, the texts continued with: “When are you coming home. You’re not going to be in trouble or get punished. Just come home.”
“Will you make me warm milk?,” Shirilla asked on 2 April.
“Just saw this. Do you still want?,” the father replied before claiming that his phone was ‘dead’ at the time the message was sent.
Further messages referenced by the outlet include a May 3 exchange, when Shirilla asked to stay at Russo’s house, saying she wanted ‘a night with friends’ and to be ‘away from home’.
“No. Sorry, don’t argue about it, it’s a no,” he texted back.
When she continued to push, Steve responded: “Kenz, I’m not doing this with you. I’m sorry, the answer is no.”
The Crash is available to watch on Netflix now.
July 17 2022 – Mackenzie Shirilla and her boyfriend Dominic Russo get into an argument. A friend overhears Shirilla tell him: “I will crash this car right now.”
July 31 2022 – Shirilla is driving Russo, 20, and their friend Davion Flanagan, 19, from Russo’s home to a friend’s house. At around 5.30am, she crashes the car into a Plidco Building in Strongsville, Ohio, travelling at 100mph without braking. Police arrive on the scene 45 minutes later. Russo and Flanagan are pronounced dead and Shirilla is transported to MetroHealth Medical Center.
August 2022 – 200 people attend a vigil for Russo and Flanagan. Shirilla remains in critical condition. When a detective visits her in hospital, she is said to be speaking a ‘unique language’ similar to pig Latin.
October 2022 – Shirilla attends a Halloween party wearing fancy dress which resembles a corpse, which Davion’s father considers in very poor taste. He says in Netflix’s The Crash: “Dressing up as corpses three months after she killed two people, it just sickened us to the very core.”
November 4 2022 – Shirilla is arrested and faces 18 charges, including two counts of aggravated murder. She also faces charges for allegedly breaking into the Columbia Church of God in Columbia Station days before the crash, along with drug trafficking and possession charges.
August 7 2023 – Shirilla’s trial begins. Her defence team argue she may have passed out at the time of the crash due to postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), but no medical records or expert testimony confirms the diagnosis.
August 14 2023 – Shirilla is found guilty on all counts. Judge Nancy Margaret Russo calls her ‘hell on wheels’, and the court concludes she intetionally crashed the car in a premeditated act.
August 23 2023 – Shirilla is sentenced to two concurrent 15 years to life sentences. Her legal team later lose an appeal and relief petition. She remains incarcerated in Ohio Refamatory for Women.
May 22 2025 – Mackenzie’s parents insist that she’s innocent. Her father Steve tells WKYC: “Show me one piece of evidence – one – that says she did this on purpose. Show it to me, then she’s right where she belongs and she’s guilty of it. But there isn’t any.” Her mother Natalie claims there are texts in which Shirilla says Russo was ‘trying to end her life’.
May 15 2026 – Netflix’s The Crash premieres. In it, Shirilla insists she is ‘not a murderer’ and has no memory of the crash, continuing to blame POTS.
May 18 2026 – Steve Shirilla is placed on administrative leave from his job as an art and digital media teacher at Mary Queen of Peace School in Cleveland following allegations he had ‘demonstrated poor judgement’. Viewers of Netflix’s documentary objected to his attitude towards Shirilla’s marijuana use and his dismissal of claims she told a classmate to end their life.
September 2037 – This is when Shirilla will be eligible for parole