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

Waldorf, MD

Obituaries

‘He Always Showed Up’: Family Honors Life Of 28-Year-Old Waldorf Man Killed In Crash The 28-year-old driver killed in a chain-reaction crash in Southern Maryland is being remembered as a life taken far too soon. Christopher Umanzor was driving shortly after 9 p.m. on Friday, March 27, in the 4300 block of Branch Avenue in Temple Hills when he was involved in a fatal crash. Investigators say Umanzor struck the back of a second vehicle for unknown reasons, and the impact caused both to veer off the road and into a guardrail. The Waldorf man was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders in Prince George's County. Now, his family is picking up the pieces aft…

by Zak Failla

03/30/2026

Alexandria, VA

Breaking News

Watch: Virginia Trooper Rescues Man From Burning Pickup Moments Before It’s Engulfed A potential crisis was averted in Northern Virginia when a fast-thinking state police trooper pulled a man from a pickup truck moments before it went up in flames. Video was released by the department on Monday, March 30, following a bold rescue after a driver crashed into a ditch. According to police, at around 12:20 a.m. on Wednesday, March 25, a trooper was called to help a motorist with a disabled vehicle on Low Ground Road in the City of Emporia. A Virginia State Trooper responding to a disabled vehicle call last week rescued a man after his pickup truck caught fire. vspvideos Wh…

by Zak Failla

03/30/2026

Lexington Park, MD

Breaking News

Raped, Burned Alive, Dumped In Swamp: Killer Denied Release In Infamous 1982 Maryland Murder One of the men responsible for the violent rape and dismemberment of a young girl more than four decades ago in Southern Maryland is staying behind bars. Jerry Lee Beatty, 59, who sought an early release from prison for his role in the murder of Stephanie Roper in 1982, was flatly denied, according to the St. Mary's County State's Attorney's Office. Beatty was one of the men who kidnapped, raped, and murdered Roper. Prosecutors say he was eligible to file the request pursuant to the Juvenile Restoration Act because he was 17 years old at the time of the offense. Judge Elizabeth Morris den…

by Zak Failla

03/30/2026

College Park, MD

Your Community

Antisemitic Post Targeting Student Online Sparks Hate Crime Probe At University Of Maryland An alleged hate crime is under investigation in Maryland after an antisemitic social media post targeting a student surfaced online. The incident happened at the University of Maryland, where campus police were notified on Sunday, March 29 about the post. Investigators say an unknown person created and shared an image of a student online. The post has since been deleted. The University of Maryland Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Unit is now working to identify who was behind it. Police are asking anyone with information about the post or the person responsible to come forward…

by Zak Failla

03/30/2026

Lorton, VA

Breaking News

Massive Boathouse Fire Engulfs Structure In Lorton, Spreads To Brush (Video) A busy night for firefighters in Northern Virginia ended with a boathouse fully engulfed in flames, sending fire ripping into nearby brush and drawing a massive response. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue crews were called after midnight on Monday morning to the 10700 block of Old Colchester Road in Lorton, where there was a reported building fire. It was their fifth call to a working fire in 24 hours, according to the department. Upon arrival, firefighters found a fully-involved boathouse fire that extended to nearby brush in the area due to heavy winds. Flames had pushed beyond th…

by Zak Failla

03/30/2026

National Interest

NASA Sending Astronauts To Moon For First Time In 50+ Years: Here's How To Watch NASA’s highly anticipated Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight around the Moon in decades, will stream live online next month, giving viewers a front-row seat to history. The agency is targeting no earlier than Wednesday, April 1, for launch, during a two-hour window that opens at 6:24 p.m. EDT, according to NASA. Artemis II will launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida and send four astronauts on an approximately 10-day journey around the moon. Mission coverage will stream on NASA's YouTube channel. The crew includes NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, a 27-year Navy veteran,…

by Zak Failla

03/29/2026

Poolesville, MD

Breaking News

Montgomery County Woman ‘Fighting For Her Life’ After Wrong-Way DUI Crash Leaves Her In Coma A Maryland woman is facing "the fight of her life" after being hit head-on by a drunk driver and placed in a coma. Raphaela Weinsweig is being treated at Shock Trauma in Baltimore after being struck in a violent collision less than a mile from her home in Montgomery County by a driver her family says has multiple DUIs on his record — and had been released before the crash. The crash was reported shortly after 1:30 a.m. on March 15. "Raphaela was tired and left (early)," Tamar Weinsweig wrote on a CaringBridge page set up for the family. "She was alone in the car, as was the other driver. I…

by Zak Failla

03/29/2026

Gaithersburg, MD

Breaking News

Wrong-Way Driver Triggers Violent Head-On Crash In Gaithersburg, Leaves Driver Trapped A wrong-way driver sparked a violent head-on crash in Maryland overnight, leaving one person trapped inside a mangled vehicle and both drivers hospitalized. The crash happened in Montgomery County, where crews rushed to Muddy Branch Road and Killarney Lane in Gaithersburg around midnight Sunday, March 29. Two vehicles collided head-on after one driver traveled the wrong way, turning the quiet night into a chaotic rescue. First responders arrived at the scene to find one person pinned inside the severely damaged car. The driver was extricated and rushed to a nearby hospital with serious in…

by Zak Failla

03/29/2026

National Interest

New Haven IDF Sergeant Killed During Battle In Lebanon A 22-year-old Israeli soldier from Connecticut was killed amid the tensions in the Middle East. Moshe Yitzchak Katz, a soldier of the 890th battalion, Paratroopers Brigade, died during combat in southern Lebanon, the IDF said on social media. "My oldest son... with a zest for life and jokes," his father Mendy said. A burial has been scheduled for Sunday, March 29. Israel expanded their ground operation in Lebanon in an effort to dismantle Hezbollah's military infrastructure, according to an Axios report earlier this month. "My heart is shattered, and the wound is real," Katz continued. …

by Zak Failla

03/28/2026

Annapolis, MD

Breaking News

Fake Love, Real Money: Maryland Man Tied To Multimillion-Dollar Romance Scam, Feds Say A Maryland man is accused of cashing in on fake love — and turning it into a multimillion-dollar scam that targeted vulnerable victims across the country. The case stretches beyond state lines, but it starts with a Maryland resident now facing federal charges tied to what prosecutors describe as a calculated romance fraud scheme. Kwame Boahene, 63, was arrested on Wednesday, March 25, after a federal grand jury indicted him on wire fraud and conspiracy charges. The pitch was simple — and devastating. Investigators say Boahene and his co-conspirators created fake online personas, building …

by Zak Failla

03/28/2026

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