“Hell on Wheels” driver Mackenzie Shirilla claimed she was experiencing blackouts in newly released texts sent weeks before the fatal crash that claimed the lives of her boyfriend, Dominic Russo, and their friend Davion Flanagan.
Shirilla, now 21, texted Russo about her alleged health scare in early July of 2022, according to the messages obtained by TMZ and published on Wednesday, May 27, noting she was concerned “it’s just gonna get worse.”
In the alleged unearthed texts, Russo questioned if Shirilla was vitamin deficient, noting it could impact blood flow to her brain.
Their exchange seemingly brought up lingering tension between the two, with Shirilla later responding to Russo, “Keep treating me like this see where that gets you.”
Her health condition has become a big topic following the release of Netflix’s The Crash, a documentary exploring Shirilla’s relationship with Russo, her drug use and posts on social media. She was sentenced to two concurrent sentences of 15 years to life in August 2023 after being convicted of murder, vehicular homicide and other charges. She was tried as an adult despite being 17 at the time. The judge notably described her in court as “literal hell on wheels.”
During her trial, she claimed to have suffered a blackout amid the deadly crash that took place on July 31, 2022, due to her postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) diagnosis, a chronic medical condition with symptoms like a fast heart rate, dizziness and fatigue.
Investigators discovered that she was racing down the road at a speed of 100 mph when she drove her Toyota Camry into a brick building in Strongsville, Ohio, that fateful morning. There was no trace of her ever putting her foot on the brake. Russo, 20, and Flanagan, 19, both did not have a seatbelt on and were pronounced dead at the scene while Shirilla suffered critical injuries and was air-lifted to a hospital.
Russo’s family has maintained that she was often making threats to their son before the crash. There was one alleged July incident captured on Russo’s phone, in which she was banging on the door, calling him derogatory names and threatening to key his car unless he let her in the house.
Another newly released text from Russo weeks before the crash showed that he was considering some time apart. He wrote to Shirilla, “I dont want u to think im abandoning u i wish it could work but i dont think its going to at this point especially with the threats we should just breakup so we can both fimd happiness somewhere else.”
After the crash, it was determined that Shirilla was under the influence of marijuana. Her blood tested negative for alcohol and mushrooms after the latter was found in her car.
One of Shirilla’s final Instagram posts is a tribute to Russo in September 2022, which said, “I just don’t understand why this had to happen, i f***ing miss you. we are soulmates. We did everything together we had the same dreams we wanted the same life I’ve never met anybody that would just make me feel so loved and protected.”
Shirilla is currently housed at the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville and will be eligible for parole in October 2037.
