Teen Girl Convicted In 100-MPH Crash That Killed 2

Mackenzie Shirilla, who was 17 at the time of the fatal accident, faces life in prison after a judge found her guilty on multiple counts of murder in the July 2022 deaths of Dominic Russo, 20, and Davion Flanagan, 19.

The conviction, which was announced on Monday at the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, comes with an automatic life sentence without chance of parole for 15 years. Shirilla is currently 19 years old.

Judge Nancy Margaret Russo will sentence Shirilla next week on Monday.

“She had a mission, and she executed it with precision,” Judge Russo said. “The decision was death.”

Shirilla was overcome with emotion, sobbing as the judge announced the verdict. She was swiftly handcuffed by deputies while the verdict was still being read. Shirilla’s supporters were also visibly emotional during the reading.

Prosecutor Michael O’Malley told press that it was video obtained from a nearby business showing the seconds before the crash that informed their decision to prosecute Shirilla as an adult for murder.

“When you drive for four or five seconds with the pedal all the way down until you hit 100 mph into a building, we felt the charge was appropriate,” O’Malley said.

The crash, which happened in the early morning hours of July 31 2022, was not discovered until 45 minutes later when a passerby spotted the scene and called authorities.

Police found Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan dead. Shirilla meanwhile was discovered trapped with one of her Prada slippers stuck to the accelerator.

Of the video footage showing the moments before the fatal crash, Judge Russo said of Shirilla, “She morphs from responsible driver to literal hell on wheels.”

While at the time law enforcement found THC in her blood they chose to charge her with murder and not with driving under the influence. They also cited that her cellphone showed she had driven near what would become the scene of the fatal crash a few days prior.

Prosecutors referenced statements Shirilla made in the weeks leading up to the crash, including video footage of her and her boyfriend arguing — and with her threatening to key his car. Additionally doctors who treated her after the accident said Shirilla shared feelings of “grief, guilt and shame.” Prosecutors said that meant the teen had “consciousness of guilt.”

Shirilla’s attorney argued that it was to be expected that drivers in fatal accidents felt guilt but that did not make them murderers. The defense also argued that the prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence Shirilla had intentionally crashed and that it was not simply a case of her losing control while driving recklessly.