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

Annapolis, MD

Your Community

DOJ Sues Maryland For Withholding Full Voter Registration List From Federal Review: Feds The Justice Department has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Maryland’s top election officials of refusing to hand over the state’s complete voter registration list, saying the move violates federal civil rights and election laws designed to ensure accurate voter rolls. Maryland is one of six states sued this week — alongside Delaware, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington — but federal officials made clear that Maryland’s alleged noncompliance triggered a months-long investigation and repeated demands that went unanswered. “Accurate voter rolls are the cornerstone of fair and fr…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Westminster, MD

Breaking News

Young Carroll County Family Displaced By Fire: 'Truly, They Lost Anything You Can Imagine' It took just minutes for a normal Saturday afternoon to turn into the kind of nightmare a young Maryland family never imagined. Chris and Ciara Gregory were home with their two little girls, Noa and Gracie, on Nov. 29 when a fire tore through their attached garage and spread fast, destroying nearly everything they own and leaving the family suddenly displaced, according to Chris’s sister, Amy Gregory. Fire crews were called just after 1 p.m. to the 1400 block of Woodridge Lane in Carroll County. Sykesville Freedom District Fire Department said crews arrived to find “a two-story single-fami…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Gaithersburg, MD

Breaking News

Unlicensed Teen Charged In Red-Light Crash That Killed 88-Year-Old Woman In Gaithersburg: PD A Maryland teen accused of slamming into the back of a car at a Gaithersburg red light — killing an 88-year-old woman inside — has now been charged months after the crash, police said. Liam Donnelly Coskun, 18, of Germantown, turned himself in on Friday, Nov. 21, after investigators obtained an arrest warrant in the death of Myrtle Gottlieb of Rockville, according to the Montgomery County Department of Police – Collision Reconstruction Unit. The crash happened on Saturday, May 31, around 8:35 a.m., at the intersection of westbound Sam Eig Highway and Fields Road in Gaithersburg, police said…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Hyattsville, MD

Obituaries

Maryland Student Heading Home For Thanksgiving Dies After Crash Six Months Before Graduation Kamara Chima was heading home to Maryland for Thanksgiving when tragedy struck — a drive that should have brought her back to the people who loved her instead became the moment her family’s world changed forever. The 21-year-old Claflin University senior was involved in a “tragic car accident” on Sunday, Nov. 23, friends of the family confirmed. She died from her injuries six days later, on Saturday, Nov. 29, bringing an end to a life that, by every account, was overflowing with promise, purpose, faith, and joy. Her family described her loss as “unexpected,” and said it has devastate…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

National Interest

‘Masked Bandit’ Breaks Into Virginia ABC Store, Gets Hammered, Passes Out In Bathroom Black Friday got a little wild at one Virginia liquor store — and the suspect wasn’t exactly old enough to buy booze. Over the weekend, members of the Hanover County Animal Protection and Shelter were called to the Ashland ABC Store, where they were met by a crime scene pulled straight from a movie after a raccoon sampled the merchandise before passing out cold in the bathroom, officials said. Hanover County Animal Protection called it a “liquor-fueled rampage.” And honestly? That feels generous. The raccoon had a little bit too much to drink in Virginia. Hanover County Animal Pro…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Waldorf, MD

Obituaries

Charles County Infant Dies Unexpectedly At 4 Months: ‘Will Always Be Cherished Family Member' Serenity was only four months old when her family’s world suddenly shattered. The infant’s death on Sunday, Nov. 23, was unexpected, her loved ones said, and the kind of loss that knocks the breath out of an entire family. But in the days since, they’ve come together in grief, leaning on faith, prayer, and each other as they try to understand a life cut far too short. “Our precious, 4-month-old Serenity left this life and entered the arms of Jesus,” Wendy Yowell and Kevin Guiffre wrote in a fundraiser arranged for the family. They said the baby girl leaves behind “a loving and grieving moth…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Arlington, VA

Your Community

National Zoo Mourns Death Of Athena, Playful Sloth Known For ‘Zoomies,’ Playful Personality Athena, a fan-favorite two-toed sloth at the National Zoo in DC, died after a sudden medical decline, officials announced. She was 7 years old. Zoo staff said Athena had early-onset chronic kidney disease, which made it hard for her to keep weight on. Over the last few months, keepers saw her lose weight faster, sleep more, wake up slower, and show less interest in her favorite foods, officials said. She was moved to the zoo’s veterinary hospital the afternoon of Nov. 13, where she was given fluids and anti-nausea medicine. Staff said she had lost muscle and weight, but an exam…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

National Interest

Trump Blasts ‘Terrible’ Dulles Airport, Promises Major Rebuild With ‘Amazing Plan’ President Donald Trump and his administration have grand ambitions for Dulles International Airport in Virginia. Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced on Tuesday plans to "rebuild" the airport, which they say was designed poorly during a Cabinet meeting on Dec. 2, repeatedly calling the transportation hub "bad." "We're going to rebuild Dulles Airport, because it's not a good airport... It should be a great airport... but it is not a good airport... it's a terrible airport," Trump said. "It was incorrectly designed, but it has a beautiful building designed by Eero Sa…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Fairfax, VA

Breaking News

Fairfax County House Erupts In Massive Blaze After Smoking Materials Spark Renovation Fire A fast-moving fire tore through a Virginia home Monday evening, sending heavy flames bursting from the back of the house as firefighters rushed in with ladders and hose lines. Crews were called around 5:15 p.m. on December 1 to the 4700 block of Twinbrook Road in the Kings Park West area, where firefighters arrived to find smoke and fire showing from the rear of the home, according to the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department. The house was under renovation and no one was inside, fire officials said. A neighbor discovered the fire and called 911. Firefighters knocked down the flames an…

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

Purcellville, VA

Breaking News

Purcellville Woman Fatally Struck By Loudoun County Transit Bus, Sheriff Confirms A Monday evening walk in Virginia turned tragic when a 34-year-old woman was hit and killed by a bus, according to the sheriff’s office. Deputies were called around 6:24 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 1, to Croson Lane near Moorefield Boulevard for a report of a pedestrian struck, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office said. The crash involved a Loudoun County Transit bus. The pedestrian — identified by deputies as Alyssa Kakol, 34, of Purcellville — was taken to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead, the sheriff’s office confirmed on Tuesday afternoon. The LCSO Crash Reconstruction Unit is …

by Zak Failla

12/02/2025

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