Netflix's true-crime documentary The Crash premiered on May 15, 2026, and immediately sent shockwaves across the internet. The film centers on Mackenzie Shirilla, the Strongsville, Ohio, teenager convicted of murdering her boyfriend Dominic Russo and his friend Davion Flanagan in a deadly 100 mph car crash in 2022. Within days of release, Shirilla's name ranked among the top three most-searched topics nationwide.
What Happened in the Strongsville Crash
On July 31, 2022, at approximately 5:30 a.m. ET, Mackenzie Shirilla was driving her Toyota Camry through Strongsville — a Cleveland suburb — with Dominic Russo, 20, and Davion Flanagan, 19, as passengers.
Investigation of the vehicle's Event Data Recorder revealed that Shirilla had her right foot pressed fully on the accelerator and never applied the service brake before impact. The vehicle had no mechanical defects that contributed to the crash.
What initially appeared to be a tragic accident quickly began to look like a calculated crime as detectives combed through the wreckage. Psilocybin mushrooms and a digital scale were also recovered from Shirilla at the scene.
The Mackenzie Shirilla Sentence and Conviction
At trial, prosecutors argued that Shirilla never applied the brakes and described the crash as intentional. She was convicted in a bench trial on multiple counts, including murder, and her sentence was upheld on appeal.
Judge Nancy Margaret Russo issued her guilty verdict stating Shirilla "chose a course of death and destruction that day," imposing two concurrent life sentences. The judge acknowledged she could have imposed an even harsher sentence.
Shirilla will not be eligible for parole until October 29, 2037. A separate bid for a new trial was denied by the same judge who found her guilty, with an appeals court affirming the decision.
Dominic Russo, Davion Flanagan, and the Toxic Relationship
Prosecutors said the crash was intentional, describing the relationship between Shirilla and Dominic Russo as deeply toxic. Family members previously described the pair's volatile dynamic, and prosecutors said Shirilla had made increasingly violent and threatening comments leading up to the crash.
The two had dated for roughly four years, meeting at Strongsville High School around 2018 and living together since 2021. The relationship involved repeated breakups, reconciliations, abuse allegations, and documented threats.
Davion Flanagan, 19, was simply riding along that night. His death left a grieving father, Scott, and sister Davyne, both of whom appear in the Netflix documentary sharing their pain and perspective.
Where Is Mackenzie Shirilla Now
Shirilla, now 21, is currently imprisoned at the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville, Ohio. She has appealed her conviction three times, including in March 2026, but each request for a new trial has been denied.
Her parents, who maintain that she is innocent, told investigators they remain in daily contact with her. She reportedly spends much of her time in prison painting and journaling.
The Ohio Supreme Court declined to review her appeal in April 2025. In March 2026, the Eighth District Court of Appeals upheld its prior ruling, with the judge declaring a petition invalid because it was filed one day after the deadline mandated by Ohio law.
The Crash Netflix Documentary — What It Reveals
Mackenzie Shirilla never spoke to police and never testified at her trial. In The Crash, now streaming, she sits down on camera for the very first time, in an interview that director Gareth Johnson and producer Angharad Scott say took considerable effort to secure.
During her prison interview, Shirilla stated: "There was no intent whatsoever. I have excessive amounts of remorse for Dominic, Davion, both of their families. This was not intentional."
The documentary features interviews with the families of all three individuals involved — Mackenzie's parents Natalie and Steve Shirilla, Dom's father Frank and sister Christine, and Davion's father Scott and sister Davyne.
Mackenzie Shirilla Documentary Fallout and Public Reaction
A Cleveland-area school community was pulled into renewed controversy following the documentary's release, triggering administrative action against a longtime teacher and reigniting public debate around one of Ohio's most closely watched criminal cases.
Since the film's release, Google Trends data show Shirilla's name ranking among the top three most-searched topics nationwide, signaling a sharp resurgence of public interest in the closed case.
The Crash is now streaming on Netflix. The Mackenzie Shirilla case remains one of the most divisive true-crime stories in recent American legal history, with families, legal experts, and millions of viewers still debating what truly happened on that Strongsville road in the early morning hours of July 31, 2022.
