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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

Traffic
Suspected Drug Deal Ends In Fiery Fatal Crash After Driver Flees Harford Deputies: Sheriff Suspected Drug Deal Ends In Fiery Fatal Crash After Driver Flees Harford Deputies: Sheriff
Suspected Drug Deal Ends In Fiery Fatal Crash After Driver Flees Harford Deputies: Sheriff Ninety-six seconds. That's how long it took a drug deal to turn into a fiery, fatal, five-vehicle crash in Northern Maryland on Tuesday afternoon. Early in the afternoon on Tuesday, June 9, deputies from the Harford County Sheriff's Office assigned to the Crime Suppression Unit observed a hand-to-hand drug deal in the area of Meadowood Drive in Edgewood, which set off a series of events that led to a fatal crash. According to Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler, deputies attempted to stop the suspect, who has not been identified pending notification of his family, but he attempted to flee. The driver …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
6-Year-Old's Screams Stop Men Trying To Lure 4-Year-Old Sister With Candy In Manassas (VIDEO) 6-Year-Old's Screams Stop Men Trying To Lure 4-Year-Old Sister With Candy In Manassas (VIDEO)
6-Year-Old's Screams Stop Men Trying To Lure 4-Year-Old Sister With Candy In Manassas (Video) A 4-year-old girl has her older sister to thank after nearly being lured away by two men offering candy in Northern Virginia. The Manassas City Police Department released body cam footage of an attempted abduction in the 9500 block of Dean Park Lane on Sunday, June 7. Shortly before 9 p.m. on the night of the attempted abduction, a mother reported that two men tried to lure her 4-year-old daughter before her 6-year-old sister intervened. Police say the girl witnessed the interaction and began screaming for her mother, sending both men scurrying away. The mother quickly gathered her childr…

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by Zak Failla
Business
Former CMX Theater Reopens In Leesburg With $5 Movies, In-Seat Dining, D-BOX Former CMX Theater Reopens In Leesburg With $5 Movies, In-Seat Dining, D-BOX
Former CMX Theater Reopens In Leesburg With $5 Movies, In-Seat Dining, D-box Moviegoers in Northern Virginia have a new reason to skip the couch. The former CMX Village 14 Cinemas at the Village at Leesburg officially celebrated its grand opening Tuesday as Phoenix Theatres Entertainment, bringing $5 movie Tuesdays, luxury recliners, in-seat food delivery, upgraded premium screens, and a full-service bar to one of Loudoun County's largest theaters. The 63,654-square-foot theater at 1600 Village Market Blvd. SE features 14 screens, including Phoenix Theatres Experience (PTX) auditoriums equipped with laser projection, oversized screens, immersive sound, and luxury re…

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by Zak Failla
Traffic
Driver Trapped In Mangled Car After Multi-Vehicle Crash On I-95 In Springfield During Rush Hour Driver Trapped In Mangled Car After Multi-Vehicle Crash On I-95 In Springfield During Rush Hour
Driver Trapped In Mangled Car After Multi-Vehicle Crash On I-95 In Springfield During Rush Hour A driver had to be freed from a heavily damaged vehicle after a multi-car crash clogged I-95 near the I-395 split during Tuesday's evening commute. The wreck happened shortly after 5 p.m. on June 9 in the southbound lanes near Springfield, where emergency crews arrived to find several vehicles involved and one person trapped inside a black sedan. Photos from the scene showed the car with extensive damage as firefighters worked around the wreckage on one of the busiest stretches of highway in Northern Virginia. The trapped driver was removed from the vehicle and taken to a hospital for trea…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Stepson Indicted In Death Of 79-Year-Old Man Who Died Weeks After Oxon Hill Beating, Police Say Stepson Indicted In Death Of 79-Year-Old Man Who Died Weeks After Oxon Hill Beating, Police Say
Stepson Indicted In Death Of 79-Year-Old Man Who Died Weeks After Oxon Hill Beating, Police Say A Maryland man is now facing a murder charge after his 79-year-old stepfather died nearly three weeks after an alleged assault left him unconscious inside their home. Delvin Graham, 47, of Oxon Hill, was indicted this month in the death of James Venable after the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled the case a homicide, according to the Prince George's County Police Department. The case began on Friday, April 3, when officers were called to a home on Fenwood Avenue for a reported dispute. When they arrived, they found Venable unresponsive and suffering from traumatic injuries. Polic…

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by Zak Failla
News
Driver Found Asleep After Launching Officer Over Cruiser On B-W Parkway Gets Prison Time: Feds Driver Found Asleep After Launching Officer Over Cruiser On B-W Parkway Gets Prison Time: Feds
Driver Found Asleep After Launching Officer Over Cruiser On B-W Parkway Gets Prison Time: Feds A Maryland man who sent a US Park Police officer flying over a patrol cruiser during a violent crash on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway is headed to federal prison. Moments later, investigators say, he was found asleep behind the wheel. Khoran Newell, 43, was sentenced on Tuesday, June 9, to one year in prison after pleading guilty to charges stemming from the December 2025 crash, according to federal prosecutors. The incident unfolded in the early morning hours of Saturday, Dec. 27, on the northbound side of the B-W Parkway. A US Park Police officer was conducting a traffic stop with hi…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Not Exactly Hogwarts: 'Trippy Wizard' Found Passed Out At Solomons Car Wash, Sheriff Says Not Exactly Hogwarts: 'Trippy Wizard' Found Passed Out At Solomons Car Wash, Sheriff Says
Not Exactly Hogwarts: 'Trippy Wizard' Found Passed Out At Solomons Car Wash, Sheriff Says The Trippy Wizard's magical journey reportedly came to an abrupt stop in a Maryland car wash parking lot. Deputies from the Calvert County Sheriff's Office were called to Solomon's Car Wash in the 14000 block of H.G. Trueman Road to investigate a suspicious vehicle sitting in the parking lot with the engine running and the driver asleep at the wheel. That's when they made their first curious discovery. There was blood on the ground near the vehicle. Bloody napkins were scattered nearby. Then deputies woke up 36-year-old Lusby resident Christopher William Walls. Deputies said the man had …

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by Zak Failla
News
Italian National Shot By CIA Officer After Drunken Gate Crash In McLean Pleads Guilty: DOJ Italian National Shot By CIA Officer After Drunken Gate Crash In McLean Pleads Guilty: DOJ
Italian National Shot By CIA Officer After Drunken Gate Crash In McLean Pleads Guilty: DOJ The Italian national who drove drunk and sped at cops outside a CIA headquarters in Virginia may be about to spend time in an American prison.  Monia Spadaro, who already had multiple DUIs on her record, pleaded guilty to disregarding a signal from a law enforcement officer and driving under the influence of alcohol after an incident in Fairfax County last year, federal authorities announced on Tuesday, June 9. The early-morning incident happened just after 3:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 22, 2025, when Spadaro’s gray Toyota Corolla entered the outbound lane of the CIA’s Langley campus in M…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Drunk, Unlicensed Teen Who Killed 88-Year-Old Passenger In Gaithersburg Crash Pleads Guilty Drunk, Unlicensed Teen Who Killed 88-Year-Old Passenger In Gaithersburg Crash Pleads Guilty
Drunk, Unlicensed Teen Who Killed 88-Year-Old Passenger In Gaithersburg Crash Pleads Guilty The unlicensed teenage driver who killed 88-year-old Myrtle Gottlieb after blowing through a red light in Maryland is facing more than a decade in prison, authorities announced on Tuesday. Liam Coskun, now 19, pleaded guilty to his role in the fatal crash in May 2025 after he drank, then got behind the wheel of a Jeep Compass he did not have permission to use and slammed into the back of a Toyota in Gaithersburg, according to the Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office. Shortly after 8:30 a.m. on May 31, 2025, Coskun was driving without a license when he caused the crash at the int…

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by Zak Failla
News
'Everything Is So Unknown': Two Maryland Boys Airlifted After Abingdon E-Bike Crash 'Everything Is So Unknown': Two Maryland Boys Airlifted After Abingdon E-Bike Crash
'Everything Is So Unknown': Two Maryland Boys Airlifted After Abingdon E-Bike Crash Two Maryland boys remain hospitalized with serious injuries after a weekend e-bike crash that left both fighting through what family members describe as a long road to recovery. The incident happened near the Laurel Bush area of Abingdon on Sunday, June 7, according to information shared by family members and Harford County emergency responders. Lucas Koehler and his friend Sam were both flown by helicopter to Johns Hopkins following the crash, according to a GoFundMe campaign launched to support their families. Their injuries are extensive. Koehler suffered severe facial injuries and …

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by Zak Failla
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