US7 min(s) read
Published 09:01 21 May 2026 GMT
AI has given a blunt verdict on whether Mackenzie Shirilla was guilty following the fatal car crash.
The 21-year-old was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after her Toyota Camry slammed into a brick wall at more than 100 mph, killing her boyfriend, 20-year-old Dominic Russo, and friend, 19-year-old Davion Flanagan.
Shirilla was 17 at the time of the crash and survived with serious injuries. In 2023, she was convicted on all 12 charges against her, including murder, aggravated vehicular homicide, felonious assault, and drug possession.
The case has continued to divide opinion, with some people convinced the crash was intentional while others believe it was a tragic accident.
But when AI was asked whether Shirilla was guilty based on the evidence provided in court, the response was decisive.
"I don’t have personal opinions, but based on the publicly reported evidence, the judge’s conclusion was that the crash was intentional rather than accidental," AI said.
It continued: "The strongest points supporting guilt were: the car accelerating to very high speed, no evidence of braking or evasive action, no confirmed mechanical failure, and testimony/evidence suggesting emotional conflict beforehand."
"The defense’s argument centered on the possibility of a medical episode or loss of consciousness, but the court found that explanation less convincing than the prosecution’s reconstruction of the crash."
"Cases like this are difficult because intent has to be inferred from behavior and evidence rather than directly observed. Reasonable people can disagree, which is why the case still gets debated online and in documentaries," it added.
During her 2023 trial, Shirilla insisted she could not remember the crash, while her defense team argued she may have suffered a medical emergency linked to postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a chronic medical condition.
However, no medical records or expert testimony confirming the diagnosis were presented in court, PEOPLE reported.
Prosecutors instead argued Shirilla intentionally caused the crash to end what they described as a "toxic relationship" with Russo.
According to Law&Crime Network’s On The Case with Chris Stewart, they also claimed the couple regularly fought and allegedly made "threats against one another".
Video footage shown during the trial allegedly captured Shirilla arguing with Russo and saying: "You lied... This is your last chance to open the door, or you are not coming out of this house all night [because] I will not leave."
Court documents from one of Shirilla’s failed appeals also stated she had previously visited the crash route days before the collision.
The documents claimed Shirilla "made the decision to drive a car, to drive an obscure route, a route she visited a few days before, and a route not routinely taken by her".
"It is noted that Shirilla chose to drive early in the morning, when few people would be around to witness the accident or provide help. It concluded that Shirilla intentionally pressed the pedal to the floor, taking the car to nearly 100 mph and aiming the car at the brick wall," the filing added.
"The court stated that it could only be speculated whether she intended to kill herself. But it concluded beyond a reasonable doubt that Shirilla acted purposefully and intentionally to kill Russo and Flanagan; her actions were ‘controlled, methodical, deliberate, intentional, and purposeful,'" the filing stated.
This month, Netflix released the documentary, The Crash, which explores the events leading up to the fatal collision and includes emotional interviews with family members, investigators, and people close to the case.
The renewed attention surrounding the case has reignited debate over several details that were reportedly left out of the film.
Among them were pictures showing Shirilla attending a concert in a wheelchair after the crash.
Prosecutors reportedly used the images during trial proceedings to argue she was trying to capitalize on the public attention rather than mourning the deaths.
Her mother, Natalie, later defended her: "And that concert she went to with Dom's cousin Abby? They picked her up. They brought her there. That was Dom. Mackenzie, Dom, and Abby all decided to go to this concert together while they were in the hospital. That was for Dom."
"Everything she did after the accident was either in honor of him, to be close to him, or just to be by him any way that she can," she added.
Another moment missing from the documentary involved police bodycam footage captured after Shirilla’s November 2022 arrest.
The footage showed her parents confronting officers at the station, with her father saying: "I need to speak to my daughter because you guys aren't allowed to speak to her at all. That's from the lawyer."
"He does not want you guys speaking to her. And I can get him on the phone, and he can tell you that over the phone if that works, or I can go in and tell her not to open her mouth to how you guys did this on the weekend," he added.
When officers reminded the family that Shirilla was already 18 years old, her father replied: "Yeah, but she's a dumb 18-year-old who just turned 18... all the kids nowadays are dumb and these guys are going to take advantage of."
Separate criticism later erupted after Shirilla’s father, Steve, commented on her marijuana use in Netflix’s Mean Girl Murders documentary series.
"I don't have a problem with her smoking dope. If you're going to smoke a drug, that's the one I believe you should take," he said.
After backlash online, Steve later insisted his comments had been taken out of context.
"That is part of a longer answer... I can't remember what the question was because the documentary people had interviewed us for two days straight and then came back and did more interviews so there was a lot of questions answered," he explained to TMZ.
"My answer wasn't in support of marijuana, it wasn't saying, I'm smoking marijuana. What I was saying was, who am I to say who can smoke and who can't smoke. I never allowed my daughter to smoke marijuana," he added.
He also denied knowing she had allegedly smoked inside the car before the crash.
"I'm not with my daughter all the time, all I can do is tell my daughter, don't do it," he said. "I told her many times, I had no idea she was smoking in the car like that, that was new to me."
"I couldn't stop her. Am I supposed to lock her up in a room? I had no idea she was driving and smoking... if I'd known, I would have had a huge issue about it. I didn't know, I don't know what else to tell you," he said.
Shirilla is currently serving her sentence at the Ohio Reformatory for Women after both of her appeals were denied.
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