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

Herndon, VA
Your Community
He Delivered 100 Instruments To Fairfax County Students. The Next Day, He Couldn't Teach He Delivered 100 Instruments To Fairfax County Students. The Next Day, He Couldn't Teach He Delivered 100 Instruments To Fairfax County Students. The Next Day, He Couldn't Teach
He Delivered 100 Instruments To Fairfax County Students. The Next Day, He Couldn't Teach Darwin De La Cruz spent one of his last days as a Virginia teacher making sure his students would have instruments after he was gone. On Thursday, Sept. 3, the Herndon orchestra teacher drove to a warehouse in Springfield, loaded up 100 instruments for young musicians at Dranesville and Herndon elementary schools, hauled them back and prepared them for students, according to colleague Allison Devereux. Then he went to Back to School Night. By the next day, De La Cruz could no longer work for Fairfax County Public Schools. "He could have said I’m done, but he went. He always goes abov…

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by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Breaking News
Mom Who Dumped Bloody Jacket After Daughter Said She 'Caught A Body' In Baltimore Learns Fate Mom Who Dumped Bloody Jacket After Daughter Said She 'Caught A Body' In Baltimore Learns Fate Mom Who Dumped Bloody Jacket After Daughter Said She 'Caught A Body' In Baltimore Learns Fate
Mom Who Dumped Bloody Jacket After Daughter Said She 'Caught A Body' In Baltimore Learns Fate A mother's love knows no bounds. Yolanda Wilkes pleaded guilty to attempting to conceal an assault committed by her daughter and two others in Baltimore, though she avoided additional time behind bars, according to the State's Attorney's Office. The charges stem from an alleged aggravated assault involving three juveniles that unfolded in the 800 block of West Lombard Street on Feb. 15, an incident that escalated enough that a police officer ultimately fired his weapon. On February 15, 2026, at approximately 12:05 a.m., a Southwest District patrol officer was called to a home in th…

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by Zak Failla
Frederick, MD
Breaking News
Second Beaver Attack In 2 Weeks Shuts More Of Cunningham Falls State Park As Rabies Fears Grow Second Beaver Attack In 2 Weeks Shuts More Of Cunningham Falls State Park As Rabies Fears Grow Second Beaver Attack In 2 Weeks Shuts More Of Cunningham Falls State Park As Rabies Fears Grow
Second Beaver Attack In 2 Weeks Shuts More Of Cunningham Falls State Park As Rabies Fears Grow High school got off to a rough start for a Maryland boy who was mauled by a massive beaver that left him hospitalized with critical injuries. “D” was swimming in the designated swimming area at Cunningham Falls State Park near Thurmont in July, when his family says a roughly 4-foot-long beaver came out of the deeper water and attacked him. His aunt, Leigh Cebula, said “D” had been swimming underwater looking for fish while his mother and 8-year-old brother watched from shore. It was a place the family knew well. Cebula said “D” had been swimming there since he was little, and that she had…

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by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Lyft Driver's Discount Deal With 2 Maryland Women Takes Terrifying Turn In Woodbridge: Police Lyft Driver's Discount Deal With 2 Maryland Women Takes Terrifying Turn In Woodbridge: Police Lyft Driver's Discount Deal With 2 Maryland Women Takes Terrifying Turn In Woodbridge: Police
Lyft Driver's Discount Deal With 2 Maryland Women Takes Terrifying Turn In Woodbridge: Police The Lyft driver who abducted two Maryland women in Virginia has been tracked down after a rideshare from hell. Falls Church resident Adar Bulut, 25, was arrested after two women returning from an event out of state found themselves trapped in his vehicle over a dispute about how much they owed him, according to the Prince William County Police Department on Friday, Sept. 11. The 32- and 25-year-old women had requested a ride through the Lyft app to take them home to Woodbridge early Sunday morning, Sept. 6, according to investigators. Police say their driver, later identified as Bulut, pic…

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by Zak Failla
Randallstown, MD
Breaking News
Baltimore Parents Charged After 2-Month-Old Daughter Dies With Signs Of Trauma: Police Baltimore Parents Charged After 2-Month-Old Daughter Dies With Signs Of Trauma: Police Baltimore Parents Charged After 2-Month-Old Daughter Dies With Signs Of Trauma: Police
Baltimore Parents Charged After 2-Month-Old Daughter Dies With Signs Of Trauma: Police Two parents are facing multiple charges for their alleged roles in an infant's death in Maryland. Officers from the Baltimore Police Department were called shortly after 1 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 9, to Harbor Hospital to investigate a reported infant death. Upon arrival, officers learned that 2-month-old Aida Alvarado had recently been pronounced deceased by medical staff. Members of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner responded and recovered the infant’s remains. Investigators say the preliminary findings indicate that the infant suffered trauma to the body. During the investigati…

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by Zak Failla
Rockville, MD
Breaking News
Occupied School Bus With Students On Board Rear-Ended In Damascus (DEVELOPING) Occupied School Bus With Students On Board Rear-Ended In Damascus (DEVELOPING) Occupied School Bus With Students On Board Rear-Ended In Damascus (DEVELOPING)
Occupied School Bus With Students On Board Rear-Ended In Damascus (Developing) A Friday morning ride to school ended with three people headed to the hospital in Maryland. The crash happened at approximately 7:05 a.m. on Sept. 11 near Woodfield and Greenel roads in Damascus, where a vehicle rear-ended an occupied school bus, according to Montgomery County officials. Five students, two aides and the driver were on the bus at the time. Two adults and one student were taken to an area hospital with minor, non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said. No other students aboard the bus reported injuries. Initial reports indicated there were no serious injuries, and fir…

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by Zak Failla
Middle River, MD
Breaking News
Killer Googled Victim's Address Before Maryland Murder, Vintage Cash's Value After Heist Killer Googled Victim's Address Before Maryland Murder, Vintage Cash's Value After Heist Killer Googled Victim's Address Before Maryland Murder, Vintage Cash's Value After Heist
Killer Googled Victim's Address Before Maryland Murder, Vintage Cash's Value After Heist Andre Raquan Riggs left behind one hell of a Google history for investigators to follow, prosecutors say. Before a Maryland murder, investigators say he searched for his victim's address. Afterward, he looked up the value of a "1950 ten-dollar bill" like the collectible currency stolen from the Glen Burnie home. More than four years later, Riggs, 28, of Middle River, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Sept. 9, in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court to first-degree murder and using a firearm in a felony crime of violence in the killing of Matthew Ponder, 27. Ponder was killed during an overnig…

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by Zak Failla
Annapolis, MD
Your Community
Maryland Sets Its Own Vaccine Guidelines As Federal Guidance Shifts Maryland Sets Its Own Vaccine Guidelines As Federal Guidance Shifts Maryland Sets Its Own Vaccine Guidelines As Federal Guidance Shifts
Maryland Sets Its Own Vaccine Guidelines As Federal Guidance Shifts Maryland is going its own way on vaccines. The Maryland Department of Health released new statewide vaccine recommendations on Thursday, Sept. 10, setting guidance for children and adults as families head into another respiratory virus season. The 2026-27 recommendations cover COVID-19, flu and RSV vaccines, along with routine immunizations including MMR and hepatitis B. But the new guidelines don't come with any new mandates. School vaccination requirements remain unchanged, state health officials said. Instead, Maryland is using new authority granted under the Vax Act, which was signed…

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by Zak Failla
Centreville, VA
Breaking News
MURDER-SUICIDE: Husband Kills Wife, Himself With 3 Children Inside Centreville Home: Police MURDER-SUICIDE: Husband Kills Wife, Himself With 3 Children Inside Centreville Home: Police MURDER-SUICIDE: Husband Kills Wife, Himself With 3 Children Inside Centreville Home: Police
Murder-suicide: Husband Kills Wife, Himself With 3 Children Inside Centreville Home: Police Three children were inside a Northern Virginia home when a husband shot his wife, and then himself on Wednesday, police say. Brandon Brown and Lavinia Brown, both 31, have been identified by the Fairfax County Police Department as the two people found dead inside a Centreville home. First responders were called around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 9, when a family member advised there had been a shooting in their home in the 6300 block of Sharps Drive, according to PFC Ingrid Palencia. Officers are on scene of a death investigation in the 6300 block of Sharps Dr in Centreville. An adult…

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by Zak Failla
Rockville, MD
Obituaries
'We Love You Rylee': Rockville Teen Remembered After Unexpected Death At 17 'We Love You Rylee': Rockville Teen Remembered After Unexpected Death At 17 'We Love You Rylee': Rockville Teen Remembered After Unexpected Death At 17
'We Love You Rylee': Rockville Teen Remembered After Unexpected Death At 17 Rylee Eutzy should have had a lot more growing up left to do. Instead, the Maryland teenager's family and friends are mourning her unexpected death at just 17, while a community that watched her grow up is quickly closing ranks around those she left behind. Eutzy, who had ties to the Rockville High School community, was remembered as a daughter, a proud sister and a friend. Photos shared following her death tell some of the rest. There is Eutzy as a little girl, smiling beside her family. Years later, holding an AAU medal with a wide grin. In another, she's dressed up and laughing alongsi…

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by Zak Failla
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