Mackenzie Shirilla admitted to murdering Dominic Russo and says 'the devil made her do it' according to ex-inmate
An ex-inmate who spent time in prison with Mackenzie Shirilla has claimed that she actually admitted to murdering Dominic Russo in prison, stating that she had twisted scrapbooks dedicated to the crash.
Mackenzie Shirilla is currently serving a sentence of between 15 years and life for the murder of her boyfriend Dominic Russo and his friend Davion Flanagan.
This has received renewed attention due to Netflix’s The Crash which looked at the 100mph crash where she killed the pair, featuring her first ever interview from behind bars.
The doc has led to several people connected to the case coming forward, with Mackenzie’s dad Steve Shirilla now being confirmed to have been sacked from his job as a teacher as a result of backlash to his interview.
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In addition to this Dominic’s sister, Christine Russo, has been outspoken – calling for a version of the Son of Sam Laws for social media called ‘Dom and Davion’s Law’.
An ex-inmate has come forward to claim Mackenzie admitted to murdering her boyfriend Dominic
Speaking to the Daily Mail, an inmate from the Ohio Reformatory for Women (where Mackenzie is jailed) called Anastasia recounted how Mackenzie told the story in jail.
Recounting the story, Anastasia told the newspaper: “[Mackenzie] said she was suicidal, but she almost looked as though she was enjoying [telling the story] like she was amused by it.
“She said the devil made her do it. She said the devil was pressing on her foot... She wanted to make it sound like she was a little devil girl, and that this is what she intended to do. Like there was a reason that Dom had to die.”
Mackenzie has long denied that she intentionally killed her boyfriend Dom, claiming that she had a medical incident such as POTS which caused her to pass out at the wheel. This was backed up by a medical professional in her appeal documents, however prosecutors have long pointed to the fact that the accelerator was at 100% the last five seconds pre-crash and there was no attempt to break.
Anastasia said Mackenzie kept a ‘scrapbook’ of the crash, something her mum also said she was doing in a phone call
In the interview Anastasia went on to state that, in prison, Mackenzie kept a scrap-book related to the case. She claimed that this in no way involved pictures of either Dominic or Davion.
Anastasia said that the scrapbook only contained pictures of herself outside of a picture of the wall she crashed into, adding: “She didn't have any pictures of Dom or Davion, I felt like that was cold.”
In a phone call with her mother Natalie from jail Mackenzie referred to herself as the ‘third victim’, with her mum saying she was going to make a scrapbook of all the media coverage.
This came after the pair celebrated being featured in the Daily Mail ahead of the trial.
Mackenzie Shirilla timeline
17 July 2022 - Mackenzie Shirilla and her boyfriend Dominic Russo get into an argument. A friend allegedly overhears Shirilla tell him: “I will crash this car right now.”
31 July 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.”
4 November 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 possession charges.
7 August 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.
14 August 2023 - Shirilla is found guilty on all counts. Judge Nancy Margaret Russo calls her ‘hell on wheels’, and the court concludes she intentionally crashed the car in a premeditated act.
23 August 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 the Ohio Reformatory for Women.
22 May 2025 - Shirilla’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’.
15 May 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.
18 May 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
Topics: Mackenzie Shirilla, TV and Film, Documentaries, True Crime, Netflix
Michael Slavin