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

Suitland, MD

Breaking News

Vehicle Fire Shuts Down US 50, Snarls Maryland Commute Near Capital Beltway (Updated) A Maryland commuter's worst nightmare unfolded on US 50 Wednesday morning. A fiery three-vehicle crash shut down nearly all westbound traffic approaching the Capital Beltway, backing up miles of traffic as firefighters, hazmat crews and highway responders rushed to the scene. The crash happened around 8:35 a.m. on westbound US 50 near Exit 8 for Martin Luther King Jr. Highway (MD 704) in Prince George's County, just before the I-95/I-495 interchange. Initial reports indicated three vehicles were involved, with one catching fire and prompting a hazardous materials response. According to th…

by Zak Failla

07/29/2026

Hagerstown, MD

Obituaries

'One Of Our Own': Maryland Community Mourns 4-Year-Old Girl Found In River A Maryland town spent Sunday searching for a missing little girl. By nightfall, it was praying for her family instead. Pocomoke City is mourning 4-year-old Skylar after the child was found in the Pocomoke River following an urgent search Sunday morning, leaving behind grieving parents, heartbroken classmates, and a community struggling to make sense of the loss. Deputies with the Worcester County Sheriff's Office joined Pocomoke City police shortly before 11 a.m. on Sunday, July 26, after the girl was reported missing. She was found in the river a short time later. Police officers and EM…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

College Park, MD

Breaking News

10 Displaced, 2 Firefighters Hurt As Maryland Fire Tears Through PG County Home In a matter of minutes, 10 people were forced from their home as flames ripped through a Maryland house on Tuesday afternoon. The fire broke out around 1:15 p.m. in the 6800 block of Dower House Road in the Mellwood area, where firefighters found heavy fire on the first floor of a single-family home. Crews quickly knocked down the blaze, but not before two Prince George's County firefighters were hurt on the job. Both were taken to a hospital for evaluation. Their conditions were not immediately available late on Tuesday afternoon. The fire also left seven adults and three juveniles witho…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Annapolis, MD

Weather

Tornado Watch Issued Across Maryland, DC, Northern Virginia As Severe Storms Move In Maryland is under a Tornado Watch until 10 p.m. Tuesday as forecasters warn the atmosphere is primed for dangerous thunderstorms capable of producing tornadoes, damaging winds, large hail and flash flooding across much of the region. The National Weather Service issued an alert on Tuesday afternoon, replacing part of an earlier Severe Thunderstorm Watch as conditions became more favorable for tornado development. The watch includes Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Baltimore City, Calvert, Carroll, Cecil, Charles, Harford, Howard, Montgomery, Prince George's and St. Mary's counties, along with all o…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Frederick, MD

Breaking News

Woman Who Filmed Sex With Minor In Frederick Learns Fate: 'Destroyed My Understanding Of Love' A 53-year-old Maryland woman who sexually abused a minor and filmed the illicit acts will spend decades in prison, authorities announced. Frederick resident Rebecca Wightman has been sentenced to 60 years in prison, with all but 40 years suspended, following her arrest and subsequent guilty plea for abusing a minor in her care. According to the Frederick County State's Attorney's Office, on Aug. 10, 2025, deputies from the Frederick County Sheriff's Office were called to investigate a reported sex offense involving Wightman and an underage child. Police were shown video evidence of the 53-…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Herndon, VA

Obituaries

'Brought Joy To Everyone': Thousands Raised For 9-Year-Old Killed In Herndon E-Scooter Crash The little boy whose death devastated a Northern Virginia neighborhood is now being remembered for something far bigger than the tragedy that took him. Friends and neighbors have raised more than $39,000 to help the family of 9-year-old Badrinarayan Hungund, describing the Herndon boy as someone who "brought joy, love, and happiness to everyone who knew him." The GoFundMe was created by family friend Venkata Pola on behalf of Badrinarayan's parents, Anand and Anusha Hungund, following the fatal crash that claimed their son's life last week. "No parent should ever have to endure the pain of…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Arlington, VA

Breaking News

Maryland Officer Accused Of Helping Steal Cars, Alter VINs In Arlington Fraud Scheme: Police A stolen car parked in a Virginia garage led investigators somewhere they never expected. In Virginia, a Maryland police officer is accused of using law enforcement resources to help a Washington, DC man steal vehicles, alter VINs and disguise stolen cars during an alleged fraud scheme that stretched more than a year, according to Arlington County police. Sierra Alston, 33, and Renaldo Gaines, 35, both of DC, were arrested last week following a lengthy investigation that began on March 18, 2025. Police say an officer conducting extra patrols inside a parking garage in the 800 block of Army…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Towson, MD

Breaking News

Maryland Woman Who Beat Breast Cancer Twice Left With Only Clothes On Her Back Melissa Varner fought her way back from breast cancer. Then she did it again. Now she's facing another battle she never saw coming. A fire has destroyed the Maryland apartment Varner spent years rebuilding into a home after surviving breast cancer twice, leaving her with little more than the clothes she escaped in, according to her family. For the people who know her, that's the part that's hardest to accept. They watched Varner endure two separate fights with breast cancer, then slowly rebuild the life cancer tried to take away. She worked to create a home that represented far more than …

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Waldorf, MD

Breaking News

Waldorf Man Who 'Shattered Child's Sense Of Safety' In Maryland Learns Prison Fate A 40-year-old Maryland man received the max sentence after preying on a minor over the course of nearly two years. Waldorf resident Terrod Lamar Branson has been sentenced to 30 years in prison, with 21 years to serve, for the sexual abuse of a minor that occurred between 2023 and 2025, the St. Mary's County State's Attorney's Office announced. The last reported incident of abuse occurred in July 2025, according to court documents. “Few crimes are more disturbing and devastating than the sexual abuse of a child. These offenses shatter a child’s sense of safety, betray their trust, an…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

Woodbridge, VA

Breaking News

Family Member Sought In Fatal Woodbridge Shooting As Police Launch Manhunt (Developing) He was gone before police got there. Prince William County detectives are searching for a 23-year-old man they say shot and killed a family member at a Woodbridge apartment complex before disappearing Monday night. The homicide happened around 9:12 p.m. on July 27 at The Fitzgerald apartments in the 13400 block of Grayson Hill Circle. According to investigators, officers were called for a domestic dispute involving weapons and found 21-year-old Ricardo Xavier Haley, of Gainesville, suffering from a gunshot wound to the upper body. Officers immediately began rendering aid, but Haley died a…

by Zak Failla

07/28/2026

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