Mostly Cloudy 81°

Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

FOLLOW ON

Facebook Twitter Linkedin Instagram

Equal parts Lois Lane, J. Jonah Jameson and Vicki Vale, Zak! has traveled from coast-to-coast covering small and big town community news in both in print and online for nearly a decade since his graduation from the award-winning Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College in 2010.

Before settling into the Hudson Valley, Zak! previously spent time in the New York Daily News newsroom and worked for hyperlocal digital news outlets on Long Island. He wrote sports for The Ithacan and The Ithaca Journal before taking his talents to the Pacific Northwest, where he served as the sports editor at the Shoshone News-Press until heading back east to work with Daily Voice.

Zak Failla's Contributions

News
‘I Saved Us’: Mechanicsville Girl, 13, Calls 911 After Crash, Fights Through Pain To Come Home ‘I Saved Us’: Mechanicsville Girl, 13, Calls 911 After Crash, Fights Through Pain To Come Home
‘I Saved Us’: Mechanicsville Girl, 13, Calls 911 After Crash, Fights Through Pain To Come Home Lilly should have died.  Instead, the 13-year-old Maryland girl dialed 911, saved her cousin’s life, and lived to fight through unimaginable pain — broken bones, surgery scars, and trauma most adults couldn’t bear — all with her mother refusing to leave her side. “She said, ‘Mommy, I saved me and Megan Rowley’s life.’ Girl, yes you did.” Those were the powerful words from the mother of 13-year-old Lilly, a Mechanicsville girl who’s become a symbol of strength across Southern Maryland following a horrific crash earlier this month. Lilly was the passenger in the car when they were stru…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
‘Combative’ Teen Goes Off At Mattawoman MS—Chokes Student, Attacks Staffer, Sheriff Says ‘Combative’ Teen Goes Off At Mattawoman MS—Chokes Student, Attacks Staffer, Sheriff Says
‘Combative’ Teen Goes Off At Mattawoman MS—Chokes Student, Attacks Staffer, Sheriff Says A Maryland middle schooler went wild in the hallway, choking a classmate, punching a staffer, and fighting with a cop before being taken down, authorities said. The chaos unfolded at Mattawoman Middle School in Charles County on Monday, June 9, according to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office. The 14-year-old student allegedly grabbed another teen by the neck, slammed them against a wall, and pinned them there, investigators said. When a school staff member tried to break it up, the student struck the adult in the chest and then ran from the scene. That’s when a school resource officer ste…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
DC Mother Killed In Maryland ATV Crash Remembered As Being 'Full Of Life' DC Mother Killed In Maryland ATV Crash Remembered As Being 'Full Of Life'
DC Mother Killed In Maryland ATV Crash Remembered As Being 'Full Of Life' She loved to travel, smile, and turn every new day into an adventure — and now a Maryland family is mourning the vibrant woman they lost too soon. District resident Trinh Viet Tran, 31, was killed in an ATV crash late Friday night, June 6, in Oxon Hill, according to Prince George’s County Police.  Police say the collision happened around 10:20 p.m. at the intersection of Livingston Road and Crisfield Drive. Tran was found critically injured at the scene and rushed to a nearby hospital, where she was later pronounced dead at 11:22 p.m., her family confirmed in a newly launched GoFundMe…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Traffic
Motorcyclist Critically Injured In Silver Spring Crash With SUV During Rush Hour: Officials Motorcyclist Critically Injured In Silver Spring Crash With SUV During Rush Hour: Officials
Motorcyclist Critically Injured In Silver Spring Crash With SUV During Rush Hour: Officials A motorcyclist suffered life-threatening injuries after a violent crash at a major Maryland intersection, officials confirmed Monday morning. Firefighters and police rushed to Viers Mill Road and Newport Mill Road in Silver Spring shortly after 8 a.m. on Tuesday, June 10, after a crash involving a motorcycle and SUV, according to officials in Montgomery County. Photos from the scene show debris scattered across the roadway, a heavily damaged silver SUV, and a mangled motorcycle down in the middle of the intersection.  The scene of the crash involving a motorcyclist in Silver Sp…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Columbia Man With Spear Shot Dead By Maryland Police After Family Stabbing, AG Says Columbia Man With Spear Shot Dead By Maryland Police After Family Stabbing, AG Says
Columbia Man With Spear Shot Dead By Maryland Police After Family Stabbing, AG Says A Columbia man armed with a large spear was fatally shot by police after allegedly stabbing a family member and refusing to drop the weapon, according to police in Howard County. The Maryland Attorney General’s Independent Investigations Division (IID) is now investigating the police-involved fatal shooting, which happened around 7:24 p.m. on Monday, June 9, on Wilbur Court, authorities announced. According to investigators, Howard County Police were first called by a man in his 20s who said he had been repeatedly stabbed by a family member, who had since taken off. The stabbing victim was…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Bethesda Teen Who Fired Gun During Park Brawl Near High School Gets Jail Time Bethesda Teen Who Fired Gun During Park Brawl Near High School Gets Jail Time
Bethesda Teen Who Fired Gun During Park Brawl Near High School Gets Jail Time Nicholas Blanco waved a loaded handgun, pointed it at a crowd of teens, and fired a round during a chaotic street fight just steps from a Montgomery County high school.  Now, a Bethesda teen is going to jail. The 18-year-old was sentenced on Monday, June 9, to four years in prison with all but 11 months suspended, followed by three years of supervised probation, according to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office. The case stems from a wild scene that unfolded in broad daylight in February, at Chase Avenue Urban Park, across from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School. According t…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
ID Of Chantilly Speeding Teen In Loudoun County Crash: Sheriff ID Of Chantilly Speeding Teen In Loudoun County Crash: Sheriff
ID Of Chantilly Speeding Teen In Loudoun County Crash: Sheriff An 18-year-old from Chantilly was killed in a crash in South Riding, and investigators say speed may have been a factor, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office announced. Khalid Al Rakan, 18, of Chantilly, was identified Monday, June 9, as the driver of a Volkswagen Jetta who died following a two-vehicle crash that happened around 2:15 p.m. on Friday, at the intersection of Tall Cedars Parkway and South Riding Boulevard, according to officials. Al Rakan and a front-seat passenger in the Jetta were both taken to a nearby hospital after the crash. The teen was later pronounced dead. The driver …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Fake Bounty Hunter Kidnaps Virginia Woman, Takes Her On Terrifying Multi-State Ride: DOJ Fake Bounty Hunter Kidnaps Virginia Woman, Takes Her On Terrifying Multi-State Ride: DOJ
Fake Bounty Hunter Kidnaps Virginia Woman, Takes Her On Terrifying Multi-State Ride: DOJ He wore a badge, carried a pistol, and called himself “Agent Leitner.” But prosecutors say he was no lawman — just a 61-year-old impostor from Pennsylvania who kidnapped a woman from her Virginia home and drove her across the East Coast while pretending he was on a federal mission. Now, Troy Edwin Leitner of Scranton will spend 15 years in prison after being sentenced for the abduction of a woman hooked on heroin, according to federal officials in Virginia. According to court documents, Leitner posed as a “fugitive recovery agent” on March 17, 2022, when he showed up to a Norfolk home with…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Suspect In Stolen DC Car Caught After Maryland Highway Pursuit, Sheriff Says Suspect In Stolen DC Car Caught After Maryland Highway Pursuit, Sheriff Says
Suspect In Stolen DC Car Caught After Maryland Highway Pursuit, Sheriff Says A suspected car thief led deputies on a wild chase across county lines before finally being stopped with spike strips on a Maryland highway, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office announced. Kazon King Cassion, 25, who has no fixed address, was arrested on Sunday, June 8, after a stolen car investigation turned into a pursuit that ended in neighboring Charles County, investigators said Monday. Deputies were investigating a commercial burglary in Lexington Park when they spotted a suspicious vehicle near Old Horse Landing Road and Mount Zion Church Road in Mechanicsville, according to the sh…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Students Assaulted Teens With Sex Toy, Recorded It In Brunswick HS Locker Room: Sheriff Students Assaulted Teens With Sex Toy, Recorded It In Brunswick HS Locker Room: Sheriff
Students Assaulted Teens With Sex Toy, Recorded It In Brunswick HS Locker Room: Sheriff A "disturbing" series of events that played out in a Maryland high school locker room landed four students in hot water, authorities announced. Five teenagers are facing charges following an investigation into incidents at Brunswick High School involving multiple students, and a sex toy, according to the Frederick County Sheriff's Office. On April 11, deputies from the sheriff's office were called to the building to investigate reports of an assault involving multiple students. According to the initial investigation, a student was in the locker room when another teen approached and as…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Prev Page 5 of 3381 3 4 5 6 7 Next
41 - 50 of 33,808 articles