00:00I'm a Kenzie step out for me
00:30I'm Detective Hazu I'm the one who's been investigating the crash
00:34you're under arrest for aggravated murder times two okay nobody's gonna
00:38ask you any questions nobody's gonna bother you
00:41can I have your key please could you please be careful taking this one off so
00:44it doesn't break the bracelet you got it you got it
00:48no thank you you got it
00:55yeah just keep your hands right here
01:00I'm not done it I'm not gonna tighten these okay
01:15I don't want to hurt you
01:20you good are they good
01:39thank you all right this cruiser right here
01:43actually he took her out of the car and we did not okay do you have anything
01:55you're gonna watch your head going in
02:09I'm not going to hurt you
02:25walk out
02:26okay
02:36recording mounted wi-fi connected recording mounted wi-fi connected
02:48sorry
03:02help me get my foot out sorry
03:04it's just like
03:12this way
03:16just stand right by that black mat
03:24straight forward
03:26over there?
03:28yep until that door
03:32just stuck on that yellow line
03:34and just face the wall
03:36is that coming back?
03:48is that coming back?
03:50i think so yeah
03:52ok
03:54this is the county juvenile fish
03:56yeah
03:58um
04:00i don't know why they have like
04:02ten of these i think they're all the same
04:04i don't know
04:06it's just hers hers hers hers hers
04:08i don't know
04:10i'll he's coming back
04:12i think
04:14eleven
04:20eleven are you going to come back to the booking room?
04:24affirm
04:26i'm on the phone with her attorney
04:28samar
04:30copy
04:32what's your first name?
04:34i'm talking
04:38i'm talking
04:39yeah i'm talking
04:40mckenzie
04:42if you can cut off
04:43i need like all the jewelry and everything to come off
04:44ok
04:45i can't wear any of it
04:46no i need you to take it off while you're in jail right now
04:48i can't wear any of it
04:50no i need you to take it off while you're in jail right now
04:52i can't wear any of it
04:54unfortunately everything's going to have to come off of right now once we know
04:58when the detective comes back and we know for sure what's going on
05:00everything's going to be bagged up here it's not going anywhere
05:02sorry this is just like one of those
05:04it's really hard to get off
05:06that's fine take your time
05:08oh my god
05:32oh my god
05:38what are the green are those extensions clips or anything to take those out
05:58i can't take them out they're like in my like they're like in
06:02if you look at a flyer we can get them out
06:06what about that tie
06:10um
06:12i'm going to hold off and see what
06:14i know
06:16it's kind of weird
06:18i don't know
06:20for that
06:22alright mckenzie
06:26just hang out up against that wall
06:28to your right
06:30i
06:32i
06:34okay
06:36you
06:38it
06:40i
06:42we
06:44you
06:46we
06:48we
06:50we
06:52we
06:54we
06:56we
06:58I don't know.
07:28I gotta take her down.
07:51Oh, you're the one transporting?
07:53Yeah.
07:54Oh, okay.
07:55That clarifies being done.
07:56Cause we weren't really told.
07:58Yeah.
07:59He wants her to go right downtown.
08:01Okay.
08:02Cause we just had, he brought one back the other night.
08:07Well, he didn't, but ag robbery and they at least gave us a little bit more information
08:14saying that they were ready to take her.
08:15So I think he called them to verify that they were going to take her and they said yes
08:21with the charges.
08:22We didn't get that information cause I know Mace called us and told us a little bit,
08:27but not that cause there was some confusion cause of the age.
08:30Okay.
08:31Maybe it changed.
08:32I mean, she's 18 now, so.
08:34That's, that's the only holdup that we had is we weren't sure if she was going to County County
08:38or.
08:39Well, I think because at the time that I'll, I'll tell you more, but.
08:43Um, I don't know if you want to put her in a holding and.
08:46No.
08:47Yeah.
08:48Um, we'll hold up.
08:49All right.
08:50We'll do that now.
08:51I don't know.
08:52You're an adult.
08:53So as soon as we're done doing what we're doing, you'll be able to make fun.
09:06Yeah.
09:07We have to wait for the detective to come back so we can figure out.
09:09Just have a seat for us.
09:11She was a bright-eyed teenager with dreams of fashion and love.
09:18He was her boyfriend since high school.
09:20Together, they were inseparable until they weren't.
09:24On a quiet morning in Strongsville, Ohio, Mackenzie Schirrilla drove her car into a building
09:32at over 100 miles per hour, killing him and another friend instantly.
09:38But was it just an accident?
09:41Or was it calculated?
09:43The court called her a killer.
09:45Her family calls her a victim of medical mystery.
09:48The black box told one story.
09:51Her silence told another.
09:53This is the fatal case of Mackenzie Schirrilla.
09:57And the devastating question at its core.
10:00Did she commit murder behind the wheel?
10:03Welcome to The Dark Stories.
10:06This is the channel where we journey deep into the shadows of crime, tragedy and the human psyche.
10:13Today's case asks us to examine what happens when love turns toxic, when youth meets trauma
10:21and when justice isn't so black and white.
10:24We bring you the tragic and chilling case of Mackenzie Schirrilla.
10:29The teen whose car became a weapon and whose life may never be the same.
10:34It was early morning, around 5.30am, on July 31st, 2022.
10:41A 2018 Toyota Camry came hurtling down Progress Drive, a dead-end industrial road in Strongsville, Ohio.
10:51There were no traffic lights, no people.
10:55Just one brick warehouse at the end.
10:58Inside the car were three people.
11:00Mackenzie Schirrilla, 17 years old, in the driver's seat.
11:05Her boyfriend, Dominic Russo, 20.
11:09And in the back seat, their friend Davian Flanagan, just 19.
11:14According to the vehicle's black box, the car was moving at more than 100 miles per hour
11:21when it ploughed directly into the warehouse wall.
11:25There was no attempt to brake, no swerve, no hesitation.
11:30Russo and Flanagan died instantly.
11:33Mackenzie was found unconscious, not breathing and badly injured.
11:38It took 45 minutes for anyone to discover the crash.
11:43And when first responders finally arrived, they couldn't make sense of what they saw.
11:49To those who knew her, Mackenzie Schirrilla was like any suburban teen.
11:55A high school senior with an interest in fashion design.
11:59She posted TikToks.
12:01She vaped.
12:02She smoked weed.
12:04She had big dreams and a steady boyfriend in Dominic Russo.
12:08A local favourite known for his easy charm and big heart.
12:13Their romance started when Mackenzie was just 14.
12:17Dominic was older, more confident.
12:21They were together for nearly four years.
12:24To their friends, they looked like soulmates.
12:27But behind the Instagram photos and birthday dinners,
12:31there were signs of something darker.
12:35By late 2021, the couple was living together in one of the Russo family's homes.
12:42But according to Dominic's mother, Christine Russo, the relationship was unravelling.
12:48She described fighting, breakups, shouting matches and even threats.
12:54In the final months, Christine said Mackenzie became possessive and Dominic often looked worn down by it.
13:02One chilling moment, just weeks before the crash, was overheard during an argument.
13:08Mackenzie allegedly shouted,
13:11I'm going to wreck this car right now.
13:13Another time, video footage showed her trying to break into Dominic's home.
13:19Were these empty threats from a heartbroken teen?
13:23Or warning signs of what was to come?
13:26The night before the crash started out normal,
13:2910.15pm, Mackenzie, Dominic and Davian attended a graduation party.
13:3611pm.
13:38They left the party and went to a friend's house to hang out.
13:42There, some of them smoked marijuana and they listened to music.
13:47Then, as dawn approached.
13:495.30am.
13:51The trio left.
13:54And minutes later, Mackenzie's Camry flew down Progress Drive and collided with the warehouse.
14:01There were no skid marks.
14:03No sign of evasive action.
14:06When investigators arrived, what they initially thought was an accident soon turned into a homicide investigation.
14:15The key to the case was the black box, the car's event data recorder.
14:21According to forensic analyst Mark Sargent, the data revealed that
14:26the accelerator pedal was fully pressed in the final five seconds.
14:31There was no use of the brake.
14:33The car experienced a hard right steering movement and was shifted between neutral and drive in a strange pattern.
14:42There were no mechanical failures.
14:45The engine was working perfectly.
14:47So was the brake system.
14:50Mackenzie's fuzzy slipper was found wedged between the gas pedal and floor mat.
14:55But Sargent concluded it could not have caused unintended acceleration.
15:01The conclusion, someone, intentionally, floored the gas until impact.
15:08Mackenzie was also found to be under the influence of marijuana and had psilocybin mushrooms, a psychedelic, in her possession.
15:18But perhaps more damning was the trail of digital evidence.
15:22Detective Zaki Hazu uncovered over 100 examples of dangerous driving on Mackenzie's social media.
15:31Driving while high.
15:33Driving while recording TikToks.
15:36Speeding.
15:37Swerving through traffic.
15:39All of it painted the image of someone who treated driving recklessly, not seriously.
15:45The prosecution believed this history, combined with the fractured relationship, created a clear motive.
15:54The trial was held in August 2023.
15:58Mackenzie faced 12 charges, including two counts of murder, aggravated vehicular homicide, felonious assault and drug possession.
16:09Because it was a bench trial.
16:10Because it was a bench trial, there was no jury.
16:13Her fate was in the hands of Judge Nancy Margaret Russo.
16:17No relation to Dominic.
16:19The judge didn't mince words.
16:22She called Mackenzie, hell on wheels, and said, this was not reckless driving.
16:29This was a mission.
16:30And she executed it with precision.
16:33The decision was death.
16:35She was sentenced to two concurrent 15 years to life terms, with the possibility of parole after 15 years.
16:43Her driver's license was revoked for life.
16:47Mackenzie gave a tearful apology in court.
16:50To the families of Dom and Davian.
16:53I am so deeply sorry.
16:55I wish I could remember what happened.
16:58I'd never do this on purpose.
17:00I'm heartbroken.
17:02But Mackenzie's parents, Steve and Natalie Sherilla, say the court got it wrong.
17:09They believed the crash may have been caused by a medical event.
17:14Specifically, a loss of consciousness, backed by health data they claim was ignored in court.
17:21They also point to text messages from Dominic, apologizing and suggesting he may have been the aggressor in some of their fights.
17:30Steve Sherilla said, show me one piece of evidence that says she did this on purpose.
17:36There isn't any.
17:38There's no proof what really happened inside that car.
17:41Her new legal team has already filed appeals and post-conviction relief motions.
17:47But so far, the conviction has been upheld.
17:51Still, the fight continues.
17:54The heartbreak extends far beyond the courtroom.
17:58Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan, both young men full of potential, are gone.
18:05Forever.
18:06Dominic's sister said,
18:08I can't imagine how I'd feel if Mackenzie gets out in fourteen years.
18:13My brother doesn't come back in fifteen years.
18:16But Dominic's father, Frank Russo, surprised many with his compassion.
18:22I lost my son.
18:24It's unbearable.
18:25But she's a kid too.
18:27Her parents are destroyed.
18:29I wish there was a way she could get help.
18:32Some kind of treatment.
18:34I don't want her life completely ruined.
18:37It's a tragic irony.
18:39That even among grief, there's empathy.
18:43The case of Mackenzie Sherilla is full of contradictions.
18:47The law called it murder.
18:49Her parents call it a medical episode.
18:52The car's black box told a story of precision.
18:56Mackenzie says she remembers nothing.
18:58And somewhere between the facts and the feelings.
19:02Two families are shattered.
19:04And two boys are never coming home.
19:07Was this a crime of passion?
19:10A moment of madness?
19:12Or the final chapter of a toxic love story gone horribly wrong?
19:16No matter the verdict, this case leaves behind one haunting truth.
19:22Some tragedies have no easy answers.
19:25A moment of madness.
19:26Thank you for watching the dark stories.
19:28If you found this case haunting or compelling,
19:31please subscribe, like, and hit the notification bell
19:35to stay updated with more true crime deep dives.
19:39We tell the stories that others overlook.
19:42Because behind every crime, there's a darkness worth exploring.
19:46Until next time, stay safe, stay curious, and stay in the dark.
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