A Cleveland Catholic school has placed art and digital media teacher Steve Shirilla on administrative leave after the release of the Netflix documentary The Crash, saying it is investigating allegations on social media that one of its teachers had demonstrated poor judgment.
Mary Queen of Peace School said it acted immediately after learning of the allegation and that the leave was tied to an active personnel investigation. The school website lists Shirilla as the art and digital media teacher.
The renewed attention follows the Strongsville crash that killed Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan on July 31, 2022, when Mackenzie Shirilla was traveling 100 mph and slammed into a brick wall. In 2023, a Cuyahoga County judge found her guilty of multiple charges, including murder and aggravated vehicular homicide, and sentenced her to life in prison with eligibility for parole after 15 years served.
Mary Queen of Peace said it could say little more while the review remains open. The school said, “We are investigating allegations made on social media that one of our teachers has demonstrated poor judgement.” It added, “Upon learning of the allegation the school acted immediately and placed the teacher on administrative leave,” and said, “The investigation is ongoing.”
The school also said, “We want every parent and family to know that the safety, wellbeing, and trust of our students remain among our highest priorities,” and, “We take all student concerns seriously and are committed to responding promptly and responsibly whenever concerns are brought forward.” For now, the question is not what happened in the crash case, which was decided in court, but how far the fallout from the documentary will spread beyond it and what the school’s investigation finds next.
