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

Rockville, MD
Your Community
Northwood High Locked Down After Student Fight; Gun Recovered, One In Custody: Police Northwood High Locked Down After Student Fight; Gun Recovered, One In Custody: Police Northwood High Locked Down After Student Fight; Gun Recovered, One In Custody: Police
Northwood High Locked Down After Student Fight; Gun Recovered, One In Custody: Police A fight between two students forced a lockdown at Northwood High School on Thursday morning after police said a gun was recovered on campus and one student was taken into custody in Silver Spring. Montgomery County Police said the incident happened at Northwood High School in Silver Spring on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 9:13 a.m., according to the Montgomery County Department of Police. Officers said MCPS placed the school on lockdown after a fight broke out between two students. Police said a gun was found during the response, and one student was taken into custody. Police said there is “no threat…

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
WATCH: Window Washers Left Swinging Over Tysons As Scaffold Snaps 15 Stories Up WATCH: Window Washers Left Swinging Over Tysons As Scaffold Snaps 15 Stories Up WATCH: Window Washers Left Swinging Over Tysons As Scaffold Snaps 15 Stories Up
Watch: Window Washers Left Swinging Over Tysons As Scaffold Snaps 15 Stories Up Two window washers were left dangling high in Virginia on Thursday morning after their scaffold failed nearly 15 stories in the air, prompting a massive high-angle rescue that drew teams from across the region. Fire officials said the emergency began around 9:17 a.m. when Technical Rescue units were sent to a suspended scaffold that had suffered a mechanical failure, trapping two workers on the side of a high-rise building in Tysons on Dec. 4, according to Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department. Crews met with building management, who explained that the window-washing basket had malfunct…

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by Zak Failla
National Interest
Virginia Man Spent A Year Quietly Buying Parts For RNC, DNC Pipe Bombs In DC: Feds Virginia Man Spent A Year Quietly Buying Parts For RNC, DNC Pipe Bombs In DC: Feds Virginia Man Spent A Year Quietly Buying Parts For RNC, DNC Pipe Bombs In DC: Feds
Virginia Man Spent A Year Quietly Buying Parts For RNC, DNC Pipe Bombs In DC: Feds A Woodbridge man is accused of quietly stockpiling bomb parts for more than a year before federal agents say he planted two pipe bombs outside the RNC and DNC in DC on the eve of Jan. 6 — then slipped back into Virginia like nothing happened. Brian J. Cole Jr., 30, was taken into custody Thursday, Dec. 4, after investigators say they finally connected the dots they had been chasing since 2021.  Cole is charged with transporting an explosive in interstate commerce with intent to kill, injure, or intimidate, and with attempted malicious destruction using fire and explosive materials, aut…

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by Zak Failla
Lexington Park, MD
Breaking News
Maryland Dealer Convicted After Record $2M Drug Bust, Largest In St. Mary’s County History Maryland Dealer Convicted After Record $2M Drug Bust, Largest In St. Mary’s County History Maryland Dealer Convicted After Record $2M Drug Bust, Largest In St. Mary’s County History
Maryland Dealer Convicted After Record $2M Drug Bust, Largest In St. Mary’s County History The man behind the largest drug bust in Maryland history has now been convicted — nearly one year after detectives seized more than $2 million worth of cocaine and fentanyl in a takedown prosecutors are calling a major win for public safety. Antwian Marquis Johnson, 39, of Great Mills, was found guilty on multiple drug-related charges after a five-day trial, according to the St. Mary’s County State’s Attorney’s Office. Investigators said Johnson was at the center of a massive narcotics operation that unraveled on Dec. 5, 2024, when detectives seized approximately 21.5 kilograms — about 47 p…

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by Zak Failla
Waldorf, MD
Obituaries
Waldorf Woman Cheryl Goldring Remembered After Posting Powerful Message Of Faith Before Death Waldorf Woman Cheryl Goldring Remembered After Posting Powerful Message Of Faith Before Death Waldorf Woman Cheryl Goldring Remembered After Posting Powerful Message Of Faith Before Death
Waldorf Woman Cheryl Goldring Remembered After Posting Powerful Message Of Faith Before Death The day before she died, Cheryl Daphene Rainey Goldring shared a message of faith with the world. “God I trust you. For you are in charge of my life and all of my affairs and I fully trust him to bring forth my highest goods.” Hours later, the Waldorf mother, grandmother, wife, cousin, friend, church pillar, coworker, and community heartbeat would be gone—leaving behind a shockwave of grief that continues to spread across Maryland and every timeline she ever touched. Goldring died suddenly and unexpectedly on Wednesday, Nov. 26, while cooking for her family. The loss hit like a punch to…

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by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
On Your Side
Virginia’s Viral Drunk Raccoon Is Back—And Now He’s Telling You What Liquor to Buy Virginia’s Viral Drunk Raccoon Is Back—And Now He’s Telling You What Liquor to Buy Virginia’s Viral Drunk Raccoon Is Back—And Now He’s Telling You What Liquor to Buy
Virginia’s Viral Drunk Raccoon Is Back—And Now He’s Telling You What Liquor to Buy The Virginia raccoon who got a little loose in a Virginia liquor store before passing out on the bathroom floor of a liquor store is now serving up drink recipes as his legend continues to grow. Virginia ABC officials unveiled a new advertising campaign featuring the curious creature after he made national news for a Black Friday bender that saw him tearing through an area liquor store — leaving a path of destruction in his wake. We appreciate the professionalism of @HanoverVa Animal Protection and Shelter in responding to our Ashland store, and providing our Black Friday visitor with a …

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by Zak Failla
Oxon Hill, MD
Breaking News
Fort Washington Man Tracked Down After MGM National Harbor Killing Of DC Victim: Police Fort Washington Man Tracked Down After MGM National Harbor Killing Of DC Victim: Police Fort Washington Man Tracked Down After MGM National Harbor Killing Of DC Victim: Police
Fort Washington Man Tracked Down After MGM National Harbor Killing Of DC Victim: Police Prince George’s County Police say they’ve tracked down the man accused of gunning down a 23-year-old at MGM National Harbor in the middle of the day. The department announced Thursday, Dec. 4, that 22-year-old Benjamin Williams of Fort Washington is now charged in the killing of Darnell Hawkins Jr. of Washington, DC in the food court a day earlier. It all unfolded just before lunch on Wednesday, Dec 3.  Officers rushed to MGM National Harbor at approximately 11:55 a.m. for a report of a shooting. When they got there, they found Hawkins on the ground suffering from multiple gunshot wou…

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by Zak Failla
Stafford, VA
Breaking News
Driver Who Rammed Trooper In Virginia I-95 Chase Arrested Nearly Two Months Later: State Police Driver Who Rammed Trooper In Virginia I-95 Chase Arrested Nearly Two Months Later: State Police Driver Who Rammed Trooper In Virginia I-95 Chase Arrested Nearly Two Months Later: State Police
Driver Who Rammed Trooper In Virginia I-95 Chase Arrested Nearly Two Months Later: State Police Virginia State Police have arrested the driver they say sparked a wild I-95 chase, rammed a trooper’s cruiser, and vanished into the night nearly two months ago. Kevin Lopez Martinez, 21, of Woodbridge, was taken into custody after troopers were able to locate the red Kia Forte at the center of the Oct. 6 pursuit, according to Virginia State Police on Thursday, Dec. 4. The arrest marks the end of a search that began just after 6:04 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 6, when a trooper tried stopping a red Kia for reckless driving on northbound I-95 in Stafford County, police said. Instead, the driver hit…

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by Zak Failla
Essex, MD
Breaking News
Maryland Man Shot Dead By Police After Knife Attack In Essex Apartment, Investigators Say Maryland Man Shot Dead By Police After Knife Attack In Essex Apartment, Investigators Say Maryland Man Shot Dead By Police After Knife Attack In Essex Apartment, Investigators Say
Maryland Man Shot Dead By Police After Knife Attack In Essex Apartment, Investigators Say A man armed with a knife was shot and killed by Baltimore County police after officers responded to a reported stabbing in Essex on Wednesday night, according to the Maryland Attorney General’s Office. The Independent Investigations Division said the shooting happened around 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 3, when officers went to the 900 block of Holgate Drive for a 911 call reporting a stabbing. Officers arrived and found a man with a knife inside the apartment. Investigators said officers gave verbal commands before multiple officers fired their service weapons and struck the man. Officers …

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by Zak Failla
Fairfax, VA
Breaking News
Workers Rescued After Window-Washing Basket Malfunctions On Tysons High-Rise: Officials Workers Rescued After Window-Washing Basket Malfunctions On Tysons High-Rise: Officials Workers Rescued After Window-Washing Basket Malfunctions On Tysons High-Rise: Officials
Workers Rescued After Window-Washing Basket Malfunctions On Tysons High-Rise: Officials Two window washers stranded high above Tysons were pulled to safety Thursday morning after their basket malfunctioned on the side of a Northern Virginia high-rise, according to Fairfax County Fire and Rescue. Units were called to the 7900 block of Tysons One Place around 11 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4, for a reported technical rescue. Fire officials said crews found two workers stuck on a disabled window-washing basket several stories up. Members of the Technical Rescue Operations Team were sent up the building and lowered both workers into a tower-ladder bucket. Fire officials said there were…

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by Zak Failla
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