Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

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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

Stafford, VA
Breaking News
Lights Out: Teen Street Racers Try To Flee Stafford Deputy Before One Crashes, Sheriff Says Lights Out: Teen Street Racers Try To Flee Stafford Deputy Before One Crashes, Sheriff Says Lights Out: Teen Street Racers Try To Flee Stafford Deputy Before One Crashes, Sheriff Says
Lights Out: Teen Street Racers Try To Flee Stafford Deputy Before One Crashes, Sheriff Says Two teenage drivers allegedly turned a Virginia road into a racetrack before their attempts to get away from law enforcement ended with both in handcuffs, authorities say. The trouble began around 10:19 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10, when a Stafford County Sheriff's Office sergeant spotted two vehicles speeding along Warrenton Road and attempted to pull them over. Neither driver was eager to stop. According to the sheriff's office, one driver attempted to evade the traffic stop by turning off his headlights, but lost control of his vehicle and came to a stop. The second driver continued fleei…

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by Zak Failla
Columbia, MD
Breaking News
KKK Hoods On Maryland Flag Spark Tennis Scandal: Howard University Club Demands Answers KKK Hoods On Maryland Flag Spark Tennis Scandal: Howard University Club Demands Answers KKK Hoods On Maryland Flag Spark Tennis Scandal: Howard University Club Demands Answers
KKK Hoods On Maryland Flag Spark Tennis Scandal: Howard University Club Demands Answers A disturbing image featuring Ku Klux Klan hoods on a Maryland state flag has sparked outrage, an indefinite suspension, and demands for accountability after it was circulated ahead of a college tennis tournament over the weekend. The controversy unfolded during the University of Maryland Club Tennis Fall Invitational, held Saturday, Oct. 10, and Sunday, Oct. 11, in College Park, after Howard University Tennis Club President Toni Rachal discovered the racist imagery in a Google document emailed to participating teams. According to a statement released by Howard's tennis club on Monday, Oct. …

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by Zak Failla
Wheaton-Glenmont, MD
Breaking News
Three Found Unresponsive At Wheaton Metro Station Following Potential Overdoses: Fire Officials Three Found Unresponsive At Wheaton Metro Station Following Potential Overdoses: Fire Officials Three Found Unresponsive At Wheaton Metro Station Following Potential Overdoses: Fire Officials
Three Found Unresponsive At Wheaton Metro Station Following Potential Overdoses: Fire Officials Three men were found unconscious in separate areas of a Maryland Metro station Monday night, prompting a large emergency response as authorities investigated a series of apparent overdoses. The incident unfolded around 8:15 p.m. on Oct. 12 at the Wheaton Metro Station near Georgia Avenue and Reedie Drive, where Montgomery County firefighters and paramedics were called after multiple people were discovered unresponsive. The situation prompted a significant response from Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services, with crews initially reporting several people in potentially life-threatening c…

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by Zak Failla
Huntingtown, MD
Breaking News
Man Admits To Shooting Someone As Deputies Arrive At Huntingtown Home, Sheriff Says Man Admits To Shooting Someone As Deputies Arrive At Huntingtown Home, Sheriff Says Man Admits To Shooting Someone As Deputies Arrive At Huntingtown Home, Sheriff Says
Man Admits To Shooting Someone As Deputies Arrive At Huntingtown Home, Sheriff Says A Maryland man made no attempt to hide what had happened when deputies arrived to investigate reports of gunfire early Monday morning. Troy Elliott Harrod, 43, of Huntingtown, was standing in the driveway of a home in the 4400 block of Harvey Road when members of the Calvert County Sheriff's Office arrived shortly after 5 a.m. on Oct. 12. He told deputies he had shot someone. Inside the residence, deputies found 55-year-old Alva Larita Harrod suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Despite lifesaving efforts, she was later pronounced dead, according to the sheriff's office. A rifle and sh…

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by Zak Failla
Hagerstown, MD
Breaking News
Oily Rags Spontaneously Combust, Sparking $100K Maryland Woodshop Blaze: Fire Marshal Oily Rags Spontaneously Combust, Sparking $100K Maryland Woodshop Blaze: Fire Marshal Oily Rags Spontaneously Combust, Sparking $100K Maryland Woodshop Blaze: Fire Marshal
Oily Rags Spontaneously Combust, Sparking $100K Maryland Woodshop Blaze: Fire Marshal A pile of oily rags left behind after a day's work turned into a $100,000 inferno at a Maryland woodshop over the weekend. The fire broke out shortly after midnight. on Saturday, Oct. 10, at a two-story, wood-framed workshop at 405 Main St. in Deer Park, Garrett County, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office. Investigators determined that oily rags used earlier in the day had been left in a pile on the building's second floor, where they spontaneously combusted and sparked the blaze. The owner discovered the fire, which sent flames tearing through the upper portion of the wo…

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by Zak Failla
Alexandria, VA
Breaking News
New Details Released In I-395 Crash That Killed 3 Teens Following Alexandria Police Chase: VSP New Details Released In I-395 Crash That Killed 3 Teens Following Alexandria Police Chase: VSP New Details Released In I-395 Crash That Killed 3 Teens Following Alexandria Police Chase: VSP
New Details Released In I-395 Crash That Killed 3 Teens Following Alexandria Police Chase: VSP A 16-year-old Maryland girl remains hospitalized as the sole survivor of a stolen-car crash that killed three other teens following a brief police pursuit in Virginia. Virginia State Police have confirmed that the surviving girl is from Prince George's County, correcting earlier information about her hometown following the Sept. 28 crash on the northbound I-395 exit ramp at Shirlington Road. Two of the teens killed in the crash, including the driver, were both 16-year-old boys from Silver Spring, Maryland. A third victim, a 17-year-old boy whose hometown has not been confirmed, died at the …

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by Zak Failla
Hagerstown, MD
Breaking News
Firefighters Rescue Victim From Second Floor Of Burning Hagerstown Duplex (PHOTOS) Firefighters Rescue Victim From Second Floor Of Burning Hagerstown Duplex (PHOTOS) Firefighters Rescue Victim From Second Floor Of Burning Hagerstown Duplex (PHOTOS)
Firefighters Rescue Victim From Second Floor Of Burning Hagerstown Duplex (Photos) A victim trapped on the second floor of a burning Maryland duplex was brought to safety by firefighters using a ground ladder as flames tore through the upstairs portion of the home. Crews from the Hagerstown Fire Department responded to a working house fire in the 700 block of Forest Drive, where firefighters encountered a blaze that required a rescue from the second floor. According to the department, crews used a ground ladder to reach the victim and bring them down from the burning building. The fire in Hagerstown. Hagerstown Fire Department Firefighters were able to contain th…

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by Zak Failla
Rockville, MD
Breaking News
Range Rover, Mercedes, $4M Property: Rockville CEO Accused In $100M COVID Fraud: DOJ Range Rover, Mercedes, $4M Property: Rockville CEO Accused In $100M COVID Fraud: DOJ Range Rover, Mercedes, $4M Property: Rockville CEO Accused In $100M COVID Fraud: DOJ
Range Rover, Mercedes, $4M Property: Rockville CEO Accused In $100M COVID Fraud: DOJ COVID-19 testing became a multimillion-dollar payday for a Maryland businessman whose spending included a Range Rover, a Mercedes-Benz, and a $4 million property, according to federal prosecutors. Marc Aaron Potash, 57, of Rockville, is facing a 13-count federal indictment tied to an alleged $100 million healthcare fraud scheme involving his Gaithersburg company, Tiero LLC, which investigators say collected more than $50 million from insurers for COVID tests that weren't performed as billed. The operation allegedly began in January 2022, when COVID testing was still commonplace, and insuran…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Obituaries
DC Official Who Rebuilt His Life After Prison Killed In Electric Scooter Crash DC Official Who Rebuilt His Life After Prison Killed In Electric Scooter Crash DC Official Who Rebuilt His Life After Prison Killed In Electric Scooter Crash
DC Official Who Rebuilt His Life After Prison Killed In Electric Scooter Crash Talib Shakir spent years rebuilding his life and helping others find a second chance before a deadly electric scooter crash in DC brought his remarkable journey to a sudden end. Shakir, 50, the director of the Mayor's Office on Returning Citizen Affairs, was killed following a collision involving two electric scooters at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and Eighth Street SE at approximately 6:47 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 9. According to the Metropolitan Police Department, Shakir and a woman were riding separate electric scooters when they collided in the intersection. First responders fo…

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by Zak Failla
Alexandria, VA
Breaking News
Girl Pinned Beneath SUV In Alexandria Freed By Firefighters In Under Six Minutes Girl Pinned Beneath SUV In Alexandria Freed By Firefighters In Under Six Minutes Girl Pinned Beneath SUV In Alexandria Freed By Firefighters In Under Six Minutes
Girl Pinned Beneath SUV In Alexandria Freed By Firefighters In Under Six Minutes It took Virginia firefighters less than six minutes to free a young girl trapped beneath an SUV after she was struck by the vehicle, forcing crews to carry out a complicated rescue before specialized equipment could arrive. The rescue unfolded on Tuesday night in the 600 block of North Ripley Street in Alexandria, where multiple 911 callers reported that a child had been struck by an SUV. First responders arrived to find the girl conscious but pinned beneath the vehicle's front axle, with the weight of the SUV preventing them from safely pulling her free. With a specialized rescue team and…

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by Zak Failla
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