Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

[email protected]

FOLLOW ON

Facebook Twitter Linkedin Instagram

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

Woodbridge, VA
Breaking News
Woodbridge Dad Says Driver Tried To Ram Him With 1-Year-Old In Car During Road Rage: Police Woodbridge Dad Says Driver Tried To Ram Him With 1-Year-Old In Car During Road Rage: Police Woodbridge Dad Says Driver Tried To Ram Him With 1-Year-Old In Car During Road Rage: Police
Woodbridge Dad Says Driver Tried To Ram Him With 1-Year-Old In Car During Road Rage: Police A road-rage argument in Virginia on Thanksgiving went from stupid to terrifying in seconds — and police say a 1-year-old child was caught right in the middle of it. Prince William County Police said officers were called just after 10:23 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 27, to the 13000 block of Worth Avenue in Woodbridge for a road-rage report in a parking lot.  A 38-year-old man told investigators he got into a dispute with another driver when the situation took a turn he didn’t see coming. Police said the other driver — Muhammad Azeem, 47, of Woodbridge — allegedly hit the man’s vehicle, leav…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Breaking News
Virginia Man Nearly Splits Car In Half After 95-MPH Pursuit Ends In Fiery Crash, Sheriff Says Virginia Man Nearly Splits Car In Half After 95-MPH Pursuit Ends In Fiery Crash, Sheriff Says Virginia Man Nearly Splits Car In Half After 95-MPH Pursuit Ends In Fiery Crash, Sheriff Says
Virginia Man Nearly Splits Car In Half After 95-mph Pursuit Ends In Fiery Crash, Sheriff Says Christian Gervais was not as swift as he thought. A late-night police chase through three Virginia counties ended with a shredded Dodge, a stunned deputy, and a 22-year-old driver who reportedly told the sheriff he ran because he “thought I was wanted from Maryland.” That explanation didn’t make much sense to Culpeper County deputies — and for anyone looking at what was left of the car, the chase itself won’t either. Christian Gervais Culpeper Police Department The Culpeper County Sheriff’s Office said the incident began Saturday, Nov. 29, when a deputy tried to overtake a speeding…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Breaking News
Virginia Family Loses Everything In House Fire As Community Raises $100K In Two Days (PHOTOS) Virginia Family Loses Everything In House Fire As Community Raises $100K In Two Days (PHOTOS) Virginia Family Loses Everything In House Fire As Community Raises $100K In Two Days (PHOTOS)
Virginia Family Loses Everything In House Fire As Community Raises $100K In Two Days (Photos) It takes only a few minutes for a house to fall apart — and only a few hours for a community to pull one back together. Norfolk Fire-Rescue said the call came in around 10:20 a.m. for a residential fire.  When crews got to Buckingham Avenue, they found heavy smoke and flames pouring from the rear of the home, the kind of fire that leaves little room for questions and even less for error. Attack lines went inside fast as firefighters worked to knock down the blaze. By then, the damage was already done. The family of six who lived there — two parents and their four young children — mad…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Breaking News
Ink-Pen Attack In Spotsylvania: ER Staffer Stabbed In Head And Face, Police Say Ink-Pen Attack In Spotsylvania: ER Staffer Stabbed In Head And Face, Police Say Ink-Pen Attack In Spotsylvania: ER Staffer Stabbed In Head And Face, Police Say
Ink-Pen Attack In Spotsylvania: ER Staffer Stabbed In Head And Face, Police Say A late-night hospital visit turned into a waiting-room horror show when a Pennsylvania woman allegedly used a creative weapon to stab a staffer in Virginia, authorities say. Shortly before 3:15 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 30, deputies from the Spotsylvania County Sheriff's Office were called to the Regional Medical Center in the 4600 block of Spotsylvania Parkway, where there was a reported stabbing.  The scene was stranger than fiction. According to the sheriff's office, upon arrival, deputies found a broken ink pen and blood on the floor in the Emergency Room waiting area.  Depu…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Fredericksburg, VA
Breaking News
Driver Crashes, Ditches Trailer, Hides in Shed Before K-9 Team Finds Him: Spotsy Sheriff Driver Crashes, Ditches Trailer, Hides in Shed Before K-9 Team Finds Him: Spotsy Sheriff Driver Crashes, Ditches Trailer, Hides in Shed Before K-9 Team Finds Him: Spotsy Sheriff
Driver Crashes, Ditches Trailer, Hides in Shed Before K-9 Team Finds Him: Spotsy Sheriff The Thanksgiving holiday took a nasty turn for a 39-year-old driver who wreaked havoc on a Virginia highway while towing a trailer, officials say. Caroline County resident Jonathan Coleman was arrested on Friday, Nov. 28 after taking members of the Spotsylvania County Sheriff's Office on a wild pursuit that resulted in his trailer being destroyed and an innocent passenger dealing with the damage he caused. On Friday night, a deputy from the sheriff's office on patrol in the 10200 block of Patriot Highway spotted a truck towing a trailer with an illegal tag - though the driver, later identif…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Breaking News
Maryland Drivers Warned Of Overnight I-95 Lane Closures Near Joh Avenue Bridge, SHA Says Maryland Drivers Warned Of Overnight I-95 Lane Closures Near Joh Avenue Bridge, SHA Says Maryland Drivers Warned Of Overnight I-95 Lane Closures Near Joh Avenue Bridge, SHA Says
Maryland Drivers Warned Of Overnight I-95 Lane Closures Near Joh Avenue Bridge, SHA Says Drivers heading down I-95 this week in Baltimore County may want to brace for some late-night headaches as road crews get to work on a busy stretch near the Joh Avenue bridge. The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration said Monday, Dec. 1, that crews will begin repairing and patching a quarter-mile section of southbound lanes of the interstate near the Joh Avenue bridge on Wednesday night, Dec. 3.  The work is expected to wrap up by Friday morning, weather permitting, officials said. Motorists can expect single-lane and double-lane closures between 9 p.m. a…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Jessup, MD
Breaking News
Correction Officers, Educator Ran Wild Smuggling Schemes Inside Jessup Prison: Maryland AG Correction Officers, Educator Ran Wild Smuggling Schemes Inside Jessup Prison: Maryland AG Correction Officers, Educator Ran Wild Smuggling Schemes Inside Jessup Prison: Maryland AG
Correction Officers, Educator Ran Wild Smuggling Schemes Inside Jessup Prison: Maryland AG Maryland’s top prosecutor says three separate contraband pipelines were running inside Jessup Correctional Institution (JCI), and investigators say they were powered by the very people who were supposed to keep the place secure. Attorney General Anthony Brown announced Monday, Dec. 1, that 10 people have been indicted in connection with three different smuggling schemes at the Anne Arundel County facility.  The investigation was led by the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Unit and the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services. “We trust correctional staff to kee…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Stafford, VA
Breaking News
Repeat DUI Driver Hit 105 MPH On I-95 Busted With Beer, Booze, Guns, Stafford Sheriff Says Repeat DUI Driver Hit 105 MPH On I-95 Busted With Beer, Booze, Guns, Stafford Sheriff Says Repeat DUI Driver Hit 105 MPH On I-95 Busted With Beer, Booze, Guns, Stafford Sheriff Says
Repeat DUI Driver Hit 105 MPH On I-95 Busted With Beer, Booze, Guns, Stafford Sheriff Says A Northern Virginia man who deputies say was tearing up I-95 at more than 100 mph late Friday night didn’t exactly help his case when he stepped out of the car — because the beer can, the booze bottle, and the smell apparently got there first. The Stafford County Sheriff’s Office said the stop happened in the northbound lanes of I-95 near mile marker 145 on Friday, Nov. 29, shortly before 11:45 p.m. A first sergeant spotted a driver flying down the highway at 105 mph in a 65, and even passing another car on the right shoulder, officials said. A deputy rolled up to assist moments later. Onc…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Towson, MD
Your Community
Baltimore County Shake-Up: IG Kelly Madigan Steps Down, Accepts Howard County Position Baltimore County Shake-Up: IG Kelly Madigan Steps Down, Accepts Howard County Position Baltimore County Shake-Up: IG Kelly Madigan Steps Down, Accepts Howard County Position
Baltimore County Shake-Up: IG Kelly Madigan Steps Down, Accepts Howard County Position Baltimore County’s top government watchdog is calling it quits after nearly a year in limbo — and she isn’t staying idle for long. Kelly Madigan, Baltimore County’s first-ever Inspector General, announced Monday that she is resigning, effective Jan. 2, 2026. She will take over as Howard County’s Inspector General on Jan. 5. Madigan has been serving in a “holdover capacity” since January 2025 after her term was not renewed. In her letter to residents, Madigan said she could not continue indefinitely without the tools or support needed to carry out her mission. “Continuing indefinitely in a …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Bel Air, MD
Your Community
Maryland Judge Hits Cassilly Over Hidden Texts — And He Pushes Right Back (UPDATED) Maryland Judge Hits Cassilly Over Hidden Texts — And He Pushes Right Back (UPDATED) Maryland Judge Hits Cassilly Over Hidden Texts — And He Pushes Right Back (UPDATED)
Maryland Judge Hits Cassilly Over Hidden Texts — And He Pushes Right Back (Updated) A Maryland judge has ruled against the Cassilly Administration again, marking the third time a court has found the Harford County Executive in violation of the Maryland Public Information Act, according to the sheriff's office. The latest decision came down on Monday, Nov. 17, when Circuit Court Judge W. Michel Pierson upheld a January 2025 order from the Public Information Act Compliance Board (PIACB) requiring the release of text messages Cassilly sent to Harford County Council President Patrick Vincenti during an April 16, 2024, public meeting. The messages were exchanged as the Council …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Prev Page 412 of 3978 410 411 412 413 414 Next
4,111 - 4,120 of 39,777 articles