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

Alexandria, VA
Breaking News
Dream Home Turns to Nightmare After ICE Detains Virginia Father of Three Dream Home Turns to Nightmare After ICE Detains Virginia Father of Three Dream Home Turns to Nightmare After ICE Detains Virginia Father of Three
Dream Home Turns to Nightmare After ICE Detains Virginia Father of Three What started as a dream home turned into a house of horrors for a Virginia family after ICE upended their lives. Jean Piere Daza and his wife, Jhosly, worked for years to fulfill their dream of buying a home for their three children, but that dream was short-lived, according to their loved ones. While preparing the home for the holidays, an alarm accidentally went off, triggering a series of events that ended with Daza being detained. "Although the police confirmed he was the homeowner, the next day he was unexpectedly detained and later turned over to ICE," Flavia Rivas Plata said, n…

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by Zak Failla
Centreville, VA
Your Community
FCPS Investigation Finds No Evidence Centreville Staff Facilitated Student Abortion FCPS Investigation Finds No Evidence Centreville Staff Facilitated Student Abortion FCPS Investigation Finds No Evidence Centreville Staff Facilitated Student Abortion
Fcps Investigation Finds No Evidence Centreville Staff Facilitated Student Abortion An internal investigation has cleared Fairfax County Public Schools staff after allegations that a Centreville High School social worker secretly helped a student obtain an abortion without parental consent sparked national attention last year. Fairfax County Public Schools said the completed review found no credible evidence of wrongdoing, concluding that the claims were based on statements that were misinterpreted, mistranslated, taken out of context, or knowingly fabricated. The findings were submitted to the US Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, the Virginia Stat…

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by Zak Failla
Woodbridge, VA
Your Community
Shoe Thrown At Student In School Hallway Leads To Charges Against Rippon MS Teacher, Police Say Shoe Thrown At Student In School Hallway Leads To Charges Against Rippon MS Teacher, Police Say Shoe Thrown At Student In School Hallway Leads To Charges Against Rippon MS Teacher, Police Say
Shoe Thrown At Student In School Hallway Leads To Charges Against Rippon MS Teacher, Police Say Honestly, who throws a shoe?  A Virginia teacher was charged this week after allegedly throwing a shoe at a student during a conversation last month, police say. An investigation was launched last month by the Prince William County Police Department following an assault involving a teacher and student at Rippon Middle School in Woodbridge on Dec. 17, 2025. According to police, the teacher, Triangle resident Delia Pruitte, 37, was speaking to an 11-year-old boy in the hallway when, at one point, she removed her shoe and threw it at a kid, striking him in the hand. Minor injuries were …

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by Zak Failla
Crofton, MD
Your Community
Crofton Elementary School Alarm Cleared After ‘Stranger’ Turns Out To Be Grandpa, Police Say Crofton Elementary School Alarm Cleared After ‘Stranger’ Turns Out To Be Grandpa, Police Say Crofton Elementary School Alarm Cleared After ‘Stranger’ Turns Out To Be Grandpa, Police Say
Crofton Elementary School Alarm Cleared After ‘Stranger’ Turns Out To Be Grandpa, Police Say What first appeared to be a frightening child-luring incident near a Maryland elementary school has now been cleared, with police confirming there was never a threat to students. Police in Anne Arundel said officers and detectives followed up on a report involving students waiting for a school bus near Crofton Elementary School on Monday, Jan. 12, and quickly determined that the incident was a mere misunderstanding. According to the Anne Arundel County Police Department, investigators located the individual involved and confirmed that “there was no threat to the children.” Police said the …

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by Zak Failla
Alexandria, VA
Your Community
Virginia Animal Rescuer Who Saved Countless Lives Now Being Honored As She Enters Hospice Virginia Animal Rescuer Who Saved Countless Lives Now Being Honored As She Enters Hospice Virginia Animal Rescuer Who Saved Countless Lives Now Being Honored As She Enters Hospice
Virginia Animal Rescuer Who Saved Countless Lives Now Being Honored As She Enters Hospice Loni Willey never wanted the spotlight — but as word spreads across Virginia that the woman who helped save more than 10,000 animals is now in hospice care, the community she built is making sure she knows just how much she mattered. For the past decade, Willey has been a constant, steady presence in animal rescue circles across the state, serving as president of Happy Tails Animal Rescue of Washington County while also working tirelessly with House of Puddles and Basset Rescue of Old Dominion.  To volunteers, partner rescues, veterinarians, and fosters, she wasn’t just a leader — she …

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by Zak Failla
National Interest
Former NY Giants Player Missing For 7 Months After Virginia Beach Trip Former NY Giants Player Missing For 7 Months After Virginia Beach Trip Former NY Giants Player Missing For 7 Months After Virginia Beach Trip
Former NY Giants Player Missing For 7 Months After Virginia Beach Trip The family of former New York Giants cornerback Sam Beal is seeking the public's assistance seven months after he was reported missing in Virginia. Beal, 29, was last seen on July 13, 2025, in Virginia Beach by his girlfriend after dropping her off at a family member's house, according to officials. He borrowed his girlfriend's vehicle that day and was supposed to head to work, but he instead drove south to Virginia. She last spoke to him over the phone that day. Beal did not return home the next day. He has not been heard from since. "Samuel did not bring anything with him aside from…

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by Zak Failla
Gaithersburg, MD
Breaking News
Jacket Sale Turns Deadly In Gaithersburg: Teen Gunned Down, Two Charged With Murder Jacket Sale Turns Deadly In Gaithersburg: Teen Gunned Down, Two Charged With Murder Jacket Sale Turns Deadly In Gaithersburg: Teen Gunned Down, Two Charged With Murder
Jacket Sale Turns Deadly In Gaithersburg: Teen Gunned Down, Two Charged With Murder Two suspects are behind bars days after 18-year-old Taeyon Malachi Prather was found shot to death in a Maryland parking lot, police say. Wisdom Da-Silva Baptista, 16, of Gaithersburg, and Montgomery Village resident Kevin Jesus Perez Fierro, 20, have both been charged in connection with the murder of Prather last week.  The body of a man was discovered in a parking lot in the 23600 block of Rolling Fork Way in Gaithersburg on Friday, Jan. 2, at approximately 7:21 p.m., according to the Montgomery County Department of Police. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services were dispatched …

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by Zak Failla
Leonardtown-California, MD
Breaking News
California Gunpoint Robbery Unravels Further As Fourth Suspect Is Charged: Sheriff California Gunpoint Robbery Unravels Further As Fourth Suspect Is Charged: Sheriff California Gunpoint Robbery Unravels Further As Fourth Suspect Is Charged: Sheriff
California Gunpoint Robbery Unravels Further As Fourth Suspect Is Charged: Sheriff A fourth person is facing charges after three men were arrested following a violent armed robbery that was reported in Southern Maryland over the weekend. Deputies from the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office were called shortly after 6 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 11, to the 44000 block of Redwood Lane, where there was a reported armed robbery. Upon arrival, investigators spoke with the victim, who reported a person known to him had pointed a handgun at him and, along with a second man, had taken cash and an expensive jacket before leaving the area in a green sedan. According to investigators…

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by Zak Failla
Arlington, VA
Breaking News
DC Man Killed Former Partner After Phone Argument While Child Was Inside Apartment: DOJ DC Man Killed Former Partner After Phone Argument While Child Was Inside Apartment: DOJ DC Man Killed Former Partner After Phone Argument While Child Was Inside Apartment: DOJ
DC Man Killed Former Partner After Phone Argument While Child Was Inside Apartment: DOJ A man who murdered his former partner while his child was inside their DC apartment copped to the crime on Monday, federal authorities announced. Pernell Sims, 35, pleaded guilty on Jan. 12 to the shooting death of his prior romantic partner, Tyshida Williams, in Southwest DC in July 2023.  According to the government’s evidence, Sims and Williams were in a romantic relationship on July 30, 2023, when the two got into an argument about her phone that rapidly escalated. Sims and Williams then went to the lobby and parking garage area of Sims’ apartment building and argued for more…

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by Zak Failla
Glen Burnie, MD
Your Community
Ex-Congressional Employee From Glen Burnie Turned House Cell Phones Into Pawn Shop Cash: Feds Ex-Congressional Employee From Glen Burnie Turned House Cell Phones Into Pawn Shop Cash: Feds Ex-Congressional Employee From Glen Burnie Turned House Cell Phones Into Pawn Shop Cash: Feds
Ex-Congressional Employee From Glen Burnie Turned House Cell Phones Into Pawn Shop Cash: Feds A former congressional employee from Maryland is accused of abusing his access on Capitol Hill to steal hundreds of government-issued cell phones — then quietly funneling them into a local pawn shop, prosecutors said. Christopher Southerland, 43, of Glen Burnie, was arrested Friday after a federal indictment was unsealed in District Court in Washington, DC, charging him with stealing about 240 cell phones from the US House of Representatives, according to federal officials. Prosecutors said the phones were valued at more than $150,000. Southerland worked as a system administrator for the H…

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by Zak Failla
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