Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

[email protected]

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

Aldie, VA
Breaking News
Virginia Boy Shot In The Eye By Arrow Survives Near-Fatal Injury, Faces Lengthy Recovery Virginia Boy Shot In The Eye By Arrow Survives Near-Fatal Injury, Faces Lengthy Recovery Virginia Boy Shot In The Eye By Arrow Survives Near-Fatal Injury, Faces Lengthy Recovery
Virginia Boy Shot In The Eye By Arrow Survives Near-Fatal Injury, Faces Lengthy Recovery A Virginia child is recovering after a bow-and-arrow accident left him with a life-threatening injury that came within millimeters of killing him. Colton Heitzer was struck on Thursday, April 9, while practicing with a bow and arrow alongside his older siblings, his parents said. The arrow entered at the corner of his right eye, triggering an emergency response. Doctors determined it had missed his eyeball and orbital bone, but came dangerously close to his carotid artery and cerebral cortex — injuries that could have been fatal, his family said. The following morning, Friday, April 10, C…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Man Wanted In Sexual Assault Inside Woodbridge Gabe’s Identified By Police (UPDATED) Man Wanted In Sexual Assault Inside Woodbridge Gabe’s Identified By Police (UPDATED) Man Wanted In Sexual Assault Inside Woodbridge Gabe’s Identified By Police (UPDATED)
Man Wanted In Sexual Assault Inside Woodbridge Gabe’s Identified By Police (Updated) Recognize him now? Police in Prince William County have identified the man they say sexually assaulted a woman inside a Woodbridge store earlier this month — and he is now a wanted man. Officers announced on Thursday, April 16, that Kendall Jamal Miller, 24, of Dumfries, has been identified as the suspect in the incident and is facing a charge of sexual battery. Attempts to locate him have been unsuccessful, police said. The update comes after officers were initially called shortly before 6 p.m. on Friday, April 3, to Gabe’s in the 14500 block of Richmond Highway to investigate a reported…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Rising Sun-Conowingo, MD
Obituaries
Father Of Two Remembered As Man Of Faith, Family After Fatal Crash In Rising Sun Father Of Two Remembered As Man Of Faith, Family After Fatal Crash In Rising Sun Father Of Two Remembered As Man Of Faith, Family After Fatal Crash In Rising Sun
Father Of Two Remembered As Man Of Faith, Family After Fatal Crash In Rising Sun A local businessman who is well-known within the Moroccan community is being remembered as a man of family and faith following his death in a Maryland crash. Chablaoui Khalid, 42, of Rising Sun, was killed by a 23-year-old Delaware driver who allegedly ran a red light while intoxicated and slammed into his vehicle late on Sunday, April 12. The crash was reported on US Route 1 at the intersection of Mount Street in Cecil County. Khalid was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders. He leaves behind a loving wife, 1-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son. Organizers of a fundraiser arr…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
National Interest
LISTEN: Son Calls 911 To Report Ex- VA Lt. Gov Dad, Mom Annandale Murder-Suicide LISTEN: Son Calls 911 To Report Ex- VA Lt. Gov Dad, Mom Annandale Murder-Suicide LISTEN: Son Calls 911 To Report Ex- VA Lt. Gov Dad, Mom Annandale Murder-Suicide
Listen: Son Calls 911 To Report Ex- VA Lt. Gov Dad, Mom Annandale Murder-Suicide Newly leaked 911 audio reveals the moments after the son of former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax found his mother critically injured inside their Annandale home. In audio released by TMZ, a dispatcher can be heard saying that a son called to report his father may have stabbed his mother, later identified as Cerina Fairfax, and his father was missing with his car in the driveway. The dispatcher also says the teen reported that his mother had multiple holes in her shirt. Officers then worked to clear the house after receiving a description of Fairfax from his son inside the home, wher…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Obituaries
Fredericksburg Mom Beat Cancer Only To Be Blindsided By Rare Complication That Took Her Life Fredericksburg Mom Beat Cancer Only To Be Blindsided By Rare Complication That Took Her Life Fredericksburg Mom Beat Cancer Only To Be Blindsided By Rare Complication That Took Her Life
Fredericksburg Mom Beat Cancer Only To Be Blindsided By Rare Complication That Took Her Life "This is f---ed up."  Nicole Noel Pressley, a 36-year-old mother in Northern Virginia, "drew a terrible lottery" after being diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer that claimed her life, leaving behind a 4-year-old daughter and a devastated family. Pressley passed away on Sunday, April 12, following a battle with triple-negative breast cancer that took an unexpected and devastating turn, according to her obituary and family members. Nicole Noel Pressley GoFundMe Born in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and later living in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, Pressley built a life cen…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Gaithersburg, MD
Your Community
Camera Found In Girls’ Changing Room Leads To Arrest Of Walter Johnson HS Employee: Police Camera Found In Girls’ Changing Room Leads To Arrest Of Walter Johnson HS Employee: Police Camera Found In Girls’ Changing Room Leads To Arrest Of Walter Johnson HS Employee: Police
Camera Found In Girls’ Changing Room Leads To Arrest Of Walter Johnson HS Employee: Police An employee at a Maryland high school who was caught red-handed installing a camera in a girls' changing room is behind bars, police say. James Mulhern III, 43, a media services technician at Walter Johnson High School, was arrested following a weeklong investigation that led to some unsettling discoveries, according to the Montgomery County Department of Police. On April 15, school officials notified police that on Tuesday, April 7, two students at Walter Johnson High School found a video camera in the control booth of the school’s theater.  Police say one of the students viewed…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Hagerstown, MD
Breaking News
Maryland Man Riding Lawnmower On Shoulder Struck, Killed By Pickup Truck: State Police Maryland Man Riding Lawnmower On Shoulder Struck, Killed By Pickup Truck: State Police Maryland Man Riding Lawnmower On Shoulder Struck, Killed By Pickup Truck: State Police
Maryland Man Riding Lawnmower On Shoulder Struck, Killed By Pickup Truck: State Police A man riding a lawnmower who was struck by a pickup truck on the shoulder of a Maryland highway died from his injuries, state police say. Joel Garcia, 42, has been identified by state police investigators as the person killed in a Caroline County crash on April 15 when his lawnmower was struck.  According to Maryland State Police investigators, shortly before 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Garcia was riding a John Deere lawnmower in the westbound shoulder of Burrsville Road in Denton near Garland Road. While he was on the shoulder, for unknown reasons, a Toyota pickup went off the roadway an…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
Clarendon Rideshare Sexual Assault Suspect Had 25 Prior Charges Before Arrest: ICE Clarendon Rideshare Sexual Assault Suspect Had 25 Prior Charges Before Arrest: ICE Clarendon Rideshare Sexual Assault Suspect Had 25 Prior Charges Before Arrest: ICE
Clarendon Rideshare Sexual Assault Suspect Had 25 Prior Charges Before Arrest: ICE A man accused of attacking a woman waiting for a rideshare in Virginia had more than two dozen prior charges before the alleged assault, federal immigration officials said. In Arlington, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are now asking local officials not to release Luzvin Orvando Garcia Moran, 28, following his arrest in the early-morning attack in Clarendon. Garcia Moran is accused of approaching the victim shortly before 5:45 a.m. on Sunday, April 12, on Wilson Boulevard, then following her when she tried to walk away, according to police. Investigators say he made sexual…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
National Interest
Former VA Lt. Gov. Kills Wife, Self Amid 'Messy' Divorce Proceedings Former VA Lt. Gov. Kills Wife, Self Amid 'Messy' Divorce Proceedings Former VA Lt. Gov. Kills Wife, Self Amid 'Messy' Divorce Proceedings
Former VA Lt. Gov. Kills Wife, Self Amid 'Messy' Divorce Proceedings Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax has been identified as the person who shot and killed his wife in a murder-suicide during a reported contentious divorce. Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis confirmed on Thursday, April 16, that Fairfax shot his wife, Dr. Cerina Fairfax, just after midnight in the basement of their Guinevere Drive home in Annandale home. He then ran into the primary bedroom where he shot and killed himself, while his teenage children were in the house. One of the children made the 911 call, authorities said. Investigators believe there was "an ongoing d…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Annandale, VA
Breaking News
Murder-Suicide: Two Found Dead In Annandale Home After Reported Dispute (DEVELOPING) Murder-Suicide: Two Found Dead In Annandale Home After Reported Dispute (DEVELOPING) Murder-Suicide: Two Found Dead In Annandale Home After Reported Dispute (DEVELOPING)
Murder-Suicide: Two Found Dead In Annandale Home After Reported Dispute (Developing) An apparent murder-suicide in Northern Virginia is under investigation after a man and woman were found dead inside their home on Thursday morning. Shortly after midnight on April 16, officers from the Fairfax County Police Department were called to the 8100 block of Guinevere Drive in Annandale to investigate a reported dispute. Police Capt. Chris Cosgriff said that investigators believe a man shot a woman before shooting himself during what was described as a "domestic-related incident."  Watch as Captain Cosgriff provides an update to a death investigation that occurred this eve…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Prev Page 252 of 3977 250 251 252 253 254 Next
2,511 - 2,520 of 39,767 articles