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These days, Mackenzie Shirilla is in prison.
The 21-year-old is serving 15 to life for the fatal crash that claimed the lives of her boyfriend and a friend.
Authorities have now released text messages between Shirilla and her late boyfriend.
In them, she accuses Russo of having tried to harm her — even to “kill” her — during a recent incident.
‘You just tried to kill me’
Strongsville law enforcement has now released text messages that Shirilla exchanged with deceased boyfriend, Dominic Russo.
In the texts, Shirilla appears to tell Russo that she believed that he had been trying to harm her during a then-recent, heated argument.
Following her arrest, investigators learned that she and Russo had gotten into a fight when she was driving erratically mere weeks before the fatal crash.
According to a family friend, Shirilla was allegedly seen striking at Russo.
The individual also reported that she had declared: “I’m going to wreck this car right now!”
Whatever may or may not have happened, Shirilla appears to be confronting Russo on a very serious topic.
“Do you think I would have my car started with you in it knowing that you just tried to kill me,” she asks in one text.
The texts also show that she does not believe that he loves her, as she asks for specific examples.
For context, the two had been dating — with multiple breakups — for four years, having gotten together when she was 13 and he was 16. (Also, yikes.)
The two had also reportedly been living together, albeit with breakups.
🗣️ Steve Shirilla is pushing back on the firestorm surrounding Netflix’s documentary “The Crash” about his daughter, Mackenzie. pic.twitter.com/6SympXpthF
— TMZ (@TMZ) May 19, 2026
Do these texts change the case?
To be clear, these text messages to not prove any criminal wrongdoing on Russo’s part.
In fact, as far as the bench trial that sentenced Shirilla to spend at least 15 years behind bars is concerned, he and their friend, Davion Flanagan, are both the victims of a deliberate homicide.
The victim is not on trial, nor is he meant to be.
However, these texts may help shed light upon things ahead of the crash.
Whether these texts describe actual events before the tragedy or simply Shirilla’s state of mind … that’s a topic of ongoing debate.
To be clear, authorities releasing the texts is likely a result of the high level of interest in the case.
(There have been multiple documentaries, given several sensational aspects of the crime.)
The texts do not change Shirilla’s conviction or sentence.
In her bench trial, the judge convicted her of multiple serious felony counts — despite her insistence that it was a tragic accident.
Shirilla is serving two concurrent life sentences. She will have a chance at parole after 15 years, though some speculate that her notoriety may come back to bite her.