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

Arlington, VA

Breaking News

Pair Used Stolen IDs To Land DC Apartments, Then Exploited Eviction Delays: Feds They found a way to live rent-free. Then prosecutors say they kept doing it. Two DC residents are accused of cycling through stolen and fake identities to land apartments without paying the bills, exploiting an eviction process that could keep them inside for months while losses climbed into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Maliktra Derenorcourt, 27, and Philippe Oliver Gadie, 34, were charged in a seven-count indictment unsealed this week as federal investigators continue digging into what they describe as a multiyear housing and Social Security fraud scheme. The alleged playbook was…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

College Park, MD

Breaking News

Former Morningside Mayor Accused Of Stealing From Groups He Served As Treasurer: Prosecutor He was the man trusted to keep track of the money. For nearly eight years, Maryland prosecutors say former mayor Bennard Cann instead misappropriated and embezzled funds while serving as treasurer for two organizations representing municipal leaders across the state and Prince George's County. Cann, 52, the former mayor of Morningside, was indicted on seven counts in connection with money belonging to the Maryland Mayors' Association and Prince George's County Municipal Association, State's Attorney Tara Jackson announced on Friday, Oct. 2. And this wasn't a matter of a few questionable tr…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Capitol Heights-District Heights, MD

Breaking News

'Fireball' Zoey Harrison's Killer Gets Prison Time For Deadly District Heights Police Chase For Zoey Harrison's family, nine years cannot bring their little "Fireball" back. But the Maryland man whose decision to flee police ended with the 3-year-old girl dead is now headed to prison. Capitol Heights resident Larry Naylor, 42, was sentenced on Friday, Oct. 2, to 10 years in prison with all but nine years suspended for grossly negligent manslaughter by motor vehicle, Prince George's County State's Attorney Tara Jackson announced. He will also serve five years of supervised probation after his release. The sentence comes nearly 19 months after the crash that killed Zoey Rose Marie…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Annandale, VA

Breaking News

Pills, 'Lean,' $300 Prescriptions: Annandale Doctor Fueled Multi-State Drug Scheme, Feds Say A doctor's appointment came with a much different price tag: $300 for a fraudulent prescription. Four Maryland men who helped turn prescriptions from a Virginia doctor into a multi-state drug operation were sentenced in federal court on Friday, Oct. 2, after admitting to their roles in a scheme involving thousands of oxycodone pills and massive quantities of prescription cough syrup. The undertaking centered around Dr. Rotimi Iluyomade and his Crossover Medical Center in Annandale, where prosecutors say co-conspirators arrived with lists of supposed "patients," false addresses and different…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Frederick, MD

Your Community

Rabid Kitten Found Near Loyola Station Park Prompts Warning For Residents, Pet Owners A tiny stray kitten is behind a big health warning in Maryland. A 6- to 7-week-old kitten found near Loys Station Park in Rocky Ridge tested positive for rabies on Friday, Oct. 2, prompting Frederick County health officials to search for anyone who may have come into contact with it. The black-and-white tuxedo kitten, which had a white mark on its head, was collected by Frederick County Animal Control on Thursday, Oct. 1. It had been showing aggressive behavior, a common symptom of rabies in cats, health officials said. Now, officials want to hear from anyone who may have had contact with…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Gaithersburg, MD

Your Community

Montgomery County Police Veteran Takes Over As Chief Of Mdta Police A longtime Maryland law enforcement veteran has officially started a new chapter at the top. Col. Nicholas Augustine was formally sworn in as chief of the Maryland Transportation Authority Police during a small ceremony at the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County on Friday morning, Oct. 2, the agency announced. The ceremony came after Augustine wrapped up a 24-year career with the Montgomery County Department of Police, where he rose through the ranks to assistant chief before leaving the department this week. Augustine began his law enforcement career with the Maryland-National Capital P…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Greenbelt, MD

Breaking News

Methadone, Amphetamine Caused Man's Death In Greenbelt Police Custody: Medical Examiner The bodycam raised questions. The autopsy provided an answer. A Maryland medical examiner determined that 40-year-old Michael MacDougall died from the combined effects of methadone and amphetamine following the July 1 crash and police encounter that ended with him unconscious in Greenbelt. His death was ruled an accident, and the restraint used by law enforcement did not contribute to it, according to findings released on Friday, Oct. 2, by the Maryland Attorney General's Office. Michael MacDougall Maryland OAG Attorney General Anthony Brown announced that Greenbelt Police Officer …

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Hagerstown, MD

Obituaries

40-Plus Years Behind The Badge: Former Washington County Sheriff Charles Mades Dies Charles Mades spent more than four decades wearing a badge. The longtime Maryland lawman and former Washington County sheriff died on Thursday, Oct. 1, prompting tributes from across the region and an order to lower flags in his honor. Mades served as Washington County sheriff for 20 years, from 1986 through 2006, following a 25-year career with the Maryland State Police. He retired from the state police as a sergeant before beginning the next chapter of a law enforcement career that would span more than four decades. The Washington County Sheriff's Office announced his death on Friday, r…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Annapolis, MD

Breaking News

Instagram 'Murder For Hire' Ad Led To Targeted Maryland Killing For Cash, Marijuana "Murder for hire." That's how Baltimore native Deondre Tywon Sharps advertised himself online before carrying out a targeted Maryland murder for the promise of money and marijuana. Sharps, 20, pleaded guilty on Friday, Oct. 2, in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court to first-degree murder in the deaths of Keion Damont McKinney and Joshua Ray Holland, both 34. The two men were murdered 15 days apart in June 2024. McKinney was first. Shortly after 7:20 p.m. on June 14, he was outside on Meade Village Circle in Severn when Sharps shot him once in the head. Surveillance video captured Sharps f…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

Columbia, MD

Breaking News

Maryland Man Convicted Of Killing Girlfriend's Father, Trying To Influence Her Testimony Killing his girlfriend's father wasn't the end of it, prosecutors say. A Maryland jury convicted Corey Conaway this week of first-degree murder in the 2024 shooting death of 67-year-old Perry Comeau, then found him guilty of trying to influence Comeau's daughter before trial. Comeau was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds inside his home on Half Dollar Court in Columbia at around 10:49 p.m. on Feb. 8, 2024. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators quickly zeroed in on Conaway, who was dating Comeau's daughter at the time and had been involved in an earlier conflict with…

by Zak Failla

10/02/2026

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