Mackenzie Shirilla she's locked up in the Ohio Reformatory for Women – and she's not going anywhere for long.
She was convicted in a 2023 bench trial of 12 counts, including murder, after she drove her Toyota Camry at a speed of more than 100 mph into a brick wall in Strongsville, Ohio, in July 2022. The crash killed her boyfriend, Dominic Russoand his high school friend Davion Flanaganboth were passengers in the car. Shirilla, who was 17 years old at the time, was the only survivor despite being seriously injured.
He was sentenced to 15 years to life concurrently and will not be eligible for parole until October 2037. His case re-entered the pop culture debate this year after the Netflix release. The crashdocumentary from May 2026 in which he reveals his silence about the fatal accident.
Where was Mackenzie Shirilla arrested?
Shirilla is serving her time at the Ohio Reformatory for Women, a county prison in Marysville, Ohio. Authorities — and later a judge — determined that Shirilla, who was found to be in possession of marijuana at the time of the incident, intentionally drove the car into the wall, causing the deaths of Russo and Flanagan. Neither passenger was wearing a seat belt.
Shirilla has always maintained her innocence, insisting she didn't mean to kill Russo or Flanagan and saying she doesn't remember the crash.
Mackenzie Shirilla Cries Out of Boredom After Argument
Life inside was not what Shirilla expected. According to a jailhouse audio tape obtained by TMZ on June 1, 2026, Shirilla complained to her mother, Natalie Shirilla, about his time off and lack of access to the commissary – a central store where inmates can buy snacks, hygiene products, stationery and more.
“How can I make this book easier?” Mackenzie asked, adding that she didn't plan to “read the same book over and over again.”
He also told his mother that they needed to “get this s**t iPad ASAP” so he could contact family and friends in prison.
At one point, Mackenzie talked about how slow the day was. “Since it's only 3:30, how about only 3:30?” he said. Actually I didn't even know it was 3:30 I thought it was like 5. It's 3:30.”
When her mother asked if she could get a job to pass the time, Mackenzie said she didn't think it was allowed. “No, because of the crimes I have, they don't allow people with crimes like me to get jobs, so I'm told. I haven't asked the workers yet,” he said. “But I won't be able to get the king's job because I'm on the seventh floor. They probably won't let me get a job.”
He added that he was “very upset” and wanted another book or cards to occupy his time. “There's literally nothing I can do in my room, nothing,” she said.
Mackenzie Shirilla became the subject of national attention after a fatal car accident in July 2022 in Ohio that left her boyfriend and best friend dead, and ended up in prison for murder. Now 21, Shirilla is serving two concurrent life sentences, and has renewed interest in her case following the Netflix documentary The Crash has. […]
Mackenzie Shirilla Gets Prison Job After Complaining
About two weeks after the call came in, Macknezie found a way to fill the void. A prison spokesperson confirmed that Us on June 11, 2026, that Mackenzie is now working as a food worker at the Ohio Reformatory for Women.
The pay is low — inmates at the facility can earn as little as $24 a month — but the assignment gives him routine outside his cell for the first time since his incarceration.
Mackenzie Shirilla's Prison Breaks Stack Up
The food service gig isn't the only thing that fills Mackenzie's days. Prison records obtained by Us show that Mackenzie has faced a number of disciplinary actions since his arrest, from misconduct to sexual misconduct on video calls.
In October 2024, Mackenzie was booked for possession of altered clothing and four “nude magazine photos”. Prison officials restricted him for 30 days.
In December 2024, he was placed on a 30-day recreational ban after he was caught “dancing” outside the gym instead of exercising.
In January 2025, guards wrote him up for having “a package of unknown drugs” and a picture of him “containing drug use.” “Shirilla admitted that she was using drugs and that it wasn't hers. And she had a photo of herself using drugs,” the security guard noted. He was kept in custody for only 30 days.
Police also accused Mackenzie in September 2024 of concealing a large number of illegal items – from bags of peanuts, boxes of jello and marshmallow fluff to “stole earrings hanging from the children's room,” “mixed pill bottles” and “a very small amount of Monopoly cash.”
Another eyebrow-raising violation involves video calls. In April 2025, Mackenzie was convicted of having “more than 100 video visits” with an “ex-released inmate” with whom we were not authorized to contact. He has been restricted for one month from using electronic devices.
Mackenzie Shirilla has made headlines for her hopes for a future release from prison, causing many people to wonder if she is still incarcerated. The convicted murderer is currently serving two concurrent sentences of 15 years to life in prison at the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville, Ohio, after he is sentenced in 2023. […]
Then in September 2025, guards reported that “a lot of inappropriate things happened” during some of her video visits, including Mackenzie showing her breasts to a guest, who at various times flashed a dildo and undressed on camera. Mackenzie pleaded guilty to unauthorized use of an electronic device and a visitation violation, receiving a 60-day video visitation ban.
Mackenzie has repeatedly clashed with prison staff over his locker. At one point in April 2025 during a confrontation with a male security guard over a modified hoodie, he allegedly laughed, “If he gets a boner the way I'm wearing it, it's his fault.”
An August 2025 report noted that another inmate was seen “putting his hand out of IP Shirilla's buttocks” as part of a “consensual sexual encounter,” leading to a seven-day ban.
The case of Mackenzie Shirilla has re-entered the national conversation after the release of Netflix's true-crime book, Crash, in May 2026 – and with renewed attention has come curiosity about the killer's origins, including the Ohio community she called home before the accident that killed her boyfriend in July 2022. […]
The Mackenzie Shirilla Story is the Subject of a Netflix Documentary
Mackenzie's case reached a wider audience in May 2026, when it was released on Netflix The crash. Mackenzie appears from prison in the documentary and expresses remorse for the fatal accident.
Her former inmate Mary Katherine “Kat” Crowder, however, told NewsNation that the type of Mackenzie viewers see in the film is not the woman she knew behind bars.
“When Mackenzie came out for the first time in the documentary, jaws dropped because he was not the same person I saw in prison when I was with him, he was walking around showing bad behavior,” said Crowder. “It wasn't the act of this dark, scary, strong girl in this video trying to show some kind of remorse.”
In the meantime, Mackenzie will have plenty of time to mend his image — about a dozen years before he's eligible for parole.
This story was compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists.
