Cleveland Family Fights for Justice After Tragic Crash
CLEVELAND, Ohio – The family of a young man killed when Mackenzie Cirilla drove into a brick wall is working hard to ensure that the convicted double murderer will not profit from the devastating crime that changed their lives forever.
Christine Russo shared that her family was “destroyed” after Cirilla, then 17, took the lives of her brother Dominic Russo, 20, and his friend Davion Flanagan, 19, in July 2022. “He didn’t have to do anything. We’re really, really devastated,” a tearful Russo, 37, expressed from her home, about ten miles from the accident site.
Interest in the case has recently surged, particularly with Netflix’s new documentary, “The Crash.” Russo and her family have launched a petition to urge Ohio lawmakers to strengthen the state’s Son of Sam law.
This law was introduced in the 1990s following public backlash against serial killer David Berkowitz, who attempted to profit from his crimes through book and movie deals.
Russo advocates for updating Ohio’s laws to reflect modern realities, covering not just traditional media but also online platforms—like Instagram sponsorships and brand deals. “All she wanted was attention,” Russo said regarding Cirilla, who frequently posted on social media and aspired to model before her incarceration.
In a recorded conversation from prison shortly after her arrest, Cirilla and her mother can be heard laughing about the public attention surrounding the double homicide, predicting that celebrities might soon reach out to her.
Former inmates from the Ohio House of Corrections for Women report that Cirilla has displayed no remorse during her time in prison. Instead, she allegedly treated incarceration like a “popularity contest,” capturing selfies on her prison-issued tablet.
“Within hours— not days— of murdering two young men, she was on her cell phone, taking selfies, doing TikToks, trying to land modeling gigs. That’s all she ever cared about,” Russo asserted.
With the Netflix documentary reigniting public interest, Russo fears Cirilla might finally achieve what she has always desired—fame. “Thanks to this movie, if she can get out… she may see how easy it is to be Instagram famous,” she explained.
Another concern for Russo is that current laws do not prevent Cirilla’s parents from potentially benefiting financially from their daughter’s actions. “There’s no law to stop her family from profiting and sending money to her,” she noted. “So we are looking into those loopholes.”
The petition, named “Dom’s Law: Victims Before Influencers,” has already accumulated over 145,000 signatures. Ohio lawmakers are responding by working on legislation to expand the Son of Sam law to include online crowdfunding platforms like GoFundMe.
Russo referred to Cirilla as a “spoiled, rotten, mean person” and expressed she would be “terrified of society” if released. Cirilla is currently in the process of appealing her conviction for the second time.
Blaming not only Cirilla for the tragedies but also her parents for their “permissive” parenting style, Russo emphasized, “We need to remind them that we are the victims here, and they are not.”
“Some people are just naturally narcissistic… and that mixes with the way she was raised with no accountability,” she added. “She was a monster.”
This sentiment is echoed by Cirilla’s former friend, Jayna Maynard, who believes Cirilla’s parents focused more on gaining her approval than on enforcing proper guidance. “From what I saw, they didn’t really care about her. They were more concerned with getting her approval,” Maynard shared. “Kenzie runs the show. She runs her parents.”
Russo also rebutted Cirilla’s claims from the Netflix documentary that she and Dominic could have been married by now if not for the tragedy, stating plainly, “No, honey, you’ve only been here a few years…you’re delusional.” Life without Dominic, she lamented, feels like a continuous “nightmare.”
