MACKENZIE SHIRILLA’S FATHER FEARS HE MAY LOSE HIS JOB AFTER NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY CONTROVERSY: “A COMPLETE OVERREACTION”

The controversy surrounding Netflix’s hit true-crime documentary The Crash continues to grow, and now the fallout is extending far beyond Mackenzie Shirilla herself. Her father, Steve Shirilla, says he believes he may soon be unemployed after being placed on administrative leave from his teaching position following comments he made in the documentary defending his daughter.

Steve Shirilla, who worked as an art and digital media teacher at Mary Queen of Peace School in Cleveland, Ohio, recently opened up about the situation during an appearance on the podcast True Crime This Week. In the emotional interview, he admitted he is increasingly doubtful that he will be allowed to return to work once his current contract expires.

“I don’t even know if I still have a job,” Steve said during the interview, which was later posted online. “My contract ends in June, and honestly, I’m guessing they’re probably not going to renew it. They’ve launched some kind of investigation, but nobody’s really telling me much.”

The investigation reportedly began shortly after The Crash premiered on Netflix on May 15 and quickly became one of the platform’s most talked-about documentaries. The film revisits the tragic 2022 crash in Strongsville, Ohio, where Mackenzie Shirilla, then 17 years old, drove her vehicle into a brick building at nearly 100 miles per hour, killing her boyfriend, 20-year-old Dominic Russo, and their friend, 19-year-old Davion Flanagan.

Prosecutors argued during trial that the crash was intentional, citing surveillance footage, black-box vehicle data, and evidence that the car never appeared to brake before impact. In 2023, Shirilla was convicted on multiple charges, including double murder, and sentenced to two concurrent prison terms of 15 years to life.

But while public debate over Mackenzie’s guilt has continued for years, it was Steve Shirilla’s appearance in the documentary that unexpectedly sparked backlash at his school.

In the documentary, Steve defended his daughter against allegations from former classmates who described her as manipulative and emotionally abusive. He also made controversial comments regarding marijuana use while discussing Mackenzie’s behavior as a teenager.

“I don’t have a problem with her smoking dope,” Steve said in one of the documentary’s most widely circulated moments. “If you’re going to smoke a drug, that’s the one I believe you should take.”

The remarks immediately drew criticism online, particularly from parents and community members connected to the Catholic school where Steve taught. Some viewers accused him of appearing dismissive about drug use and questioned whether his comments reflected appropriate judgment for someone working with children.

According to local reports from Cleveland media outlets, school administrators later sent an email to parents informing them that a teacher had been placed on administrative leave following concerns involving “poor judgment.”

Though the email reportedly did not mention Steve Shirilla by name, many parents quickly connected the announcement to the documentary controversy.

“We want every parent and family to know that the safety, wellbeing, and trust of our students remain among our highest priorities,” the school’s statement reportedly said. “We take all student concerns seriously and are committed to responding responsibly whenever issues are raised.”

For Steve, however, the school’s response feels deeply unfair.

“This could have been handled with a simple conversation,” he said on the podcast. “Instead, it turned into this massive thing overnight. It’s honestly one of the biggest knee-jerk reactions I’ve ever seen.”

He also expressed disappointment that the Catholic institution where he worked did not publicly support him during the controversy.

“I thought a Catholic school was supposed to believe in compassion, understanding, forgiveness,” he said. “But I haven’t felt much of that through this process.”

Sources close to the Shirilla family say Steve has been under enormous stress in recent weeks as criticism intensified online following the documentary’s release. Friends reportedly describe him as emotionally exhausted and frustrated by the public reaction, particularly because he insists his comments were taken out of context.

In a separate interview with TMZ, Steve clarified that he was not encouraging marijuana use or endorsing drug culture. Instead, he said he was trying to explain the difficulties parents face when attempting to control the decisions of older teenagers.

“I was never telling people to go smoke marijuana,” he explained. “I was simply saying that I couldn’t completely control every choice my daughter made once she got older.”

He added that Mackenzie was already making independent decisions as a teenager and argued that many parents struggle with similar realities behind closed doors.

“What was I supposed to do?” Steve reportedly said. “Lock her in her room? Parents can only do so much.”

Still, critics remain unconvinced. Some parents reportedly contacted school administrators demanding action after clips from the documentary spread widely across TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube. Others questioned whether Steve’s public defense of his daughter — despite her murder conviction — created discomfort within the school community.

The controversy has become yet another chapter in the ongoing public obsession surrounding the Shirilla case. Since The Crash premiered, discussions about Mackenzie Shirilla have exploded online, with some viewers portraying her as misunderstood while others view her as a remorseless killer who continues receiving attention she does not deserve.

Meanwhile, Steve continues to strongly maintain his daughter’s innocence.

Throughout the documentary, he repeatedly argued that Mackenzie did not intentionally kill Dominic Russo and Davion Flanagan. According to him, the prosecution ignored possible medical explanations and unfairly shaped public opinion against her before trial.

That argument has recently resurfaced in court filings submitted by Mackenzie’s new legal team to the Ohio Supreme Court. Her attorneys now claim there may have been medical evidence suggesting she suffered from a pre-existing condition that could have caused her to lose consciousness behind the wheel.

The appeal alleges that her original defense attorney failed to properly investigate that possibility or secure expert testimony that may have influenced the outcome of the trial.

Legal analysts say the argument could become central to future appeals if the Ohio Supreme Court agrees to review the case. However, prosecutors continue to insist the evidence overwhelmingly supported the conviction and maintain confidence that the verdict will stand.

As the legal battle continues, Steve Shirilla now faces uncertainty not only about his daughter’s future, but also about his own career and reputation.

People close to the family say the pressure has become overwhelming, especially as online criticism continues intensifying. Some supporters argue Steve is simply standing by his child during an unimaginable situation, while others believe his public comments crossed a line given the seriousness of the case.

For now, neither the school nor the Ohio Supreme Court has announced final decisions regarding Steve’s employment status or Mackenzie’s latest appeal.

But with national attention still fixed on The Crash, the Shirilla family remains at the center of a growing storm involving true-crime fame, public outrage, legal controversy, and the lasting emotional fallout from one of Ohio’s most heavily discussed criminal cases in recent memory.