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Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

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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

News
Winning Ticket, Winning Family: Ashburn Nephew Shares $1M Raffle Prize With Aunt Winning Ticket, Winning Family: Ashburn Nephew Shares $1M Raffle Prize With Aunt
Winning Ticket, Winning Family: Ashburn Nephew Shares $1M Raffle Prize With Aunt If Miran Smith wasn’t already his Aunt Geraldine’s favorite nephew, he is now.  A simple gift—a Virginia New Year’s Millionaire Raffle ticket—turned into a 7-figure jackpot for the lucky winners, and they’re splitting the spoils of their victory Miran Smith, of Ashburn is starting 2025 on a high note after a gift for his Aunt Geraldine Smith from Emporia turned into a life-changing windfall.  The $1 million top prize from Virginia’s New Year’s Millionaire Raffle, announced on Wednesday, January 1, was claimed with ticket #074973, according to officials. Smith bought five raffle …

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by Zak Failla
News
Longtime NBC Washington Reporter, DC Native Derrick Ward Dies At 62 Longtime NBC Washington Reporter, DC Native Derrick Ward Dies At 62
Longtime NBC Washington Reporter, DC Native Derrick Ward Dies At 62 Veteran NBC Washington reporter Derrick Ward has died at the age of 62 after suffering complications from a recent cardiac arrest, the station confirmed on Wednesday. Ward, a District resident, had been a staple in the community for years, having reported for NBC, as well as local station WTOP after getting his start in upstate New York .  He has been covering his hometown community since 2006. Ward was pronounced dead on Wednesday, Jan. 7 following the complications, his family confirmed in a statement. No further details have been provided. "We'll miss his writing, his reporting, h…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
Lifelong Educator Entering Hospice Care After Battle With Cancer 'Touched So Many' Lifelong Educator Entering Hospice Care After Battle With Cancer 'Touched So Many'
Lifelong Educator Entering Hospice Care After Battle With Cancer 'Touched So Many' A beloved teacher and mother of two who bravely battled cancer before it returned one last time is being remembered for her decades educating children in the region. Kym Hurley, a lifelong educator who was forced to retire due to her health conditions, has entered hospice care, organizers of a long-running GoFundMe campaign for her family confirmed on Tuesday afternoon. Hurley, who has taught children for more than 30 years - and would have taught or another 30 if her health permitted, friends say - put on a courageous years-long fight with the disease. The teacher is being remembered for …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Fugitive Who Escaped From Police Through I-495 Drainage Pipe Facing Fresh Charges: VSP Fugitive Who Escaped From Police Through I-495 Drainage Pipe Facing Fresh Charges: VSP
Fugitive Who Escaped From Police Through I-495 Drainage Pipe Facing Fresh Charges: VSP New charges have been filed against Victor Caneza, days after he was able to make his great escape through the drainage system under I-495 while fleeing state police in Virginia. The chaos began around 2:40 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 6 along the eastbound lanes of the interstate near Eisenhower Avenue when troopers were investigating a pair o crashes.  A third crash happened behind them, and one of the drivers involved—later identified as the 38-year-old Caneza—sped off from the scene after briefly stopping, state police said. Caneza made it less than a mile before getting into another cras…

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by Zak Failla
Business
Portnoy Hits Essex's 'Taj Mahal Of Pizza' On A Tip From Frank's Portnoy Hits Essex's 'Taj Mahal Of Pizza' On A Tip From Frank's
Portnoy Hits Essex's 'Taj Mahal Of Pizza' On A Tip From Frank's El Presidente's tour of Maryland pizzerias continued with his latest video, after he being tipped off by the owners of his last stop who told him to try the pie at Pizza John's in Essex. Fresh off an overwhelmingly positive visit to Frank's Pizza & Pasta in Baltimore, whose owners directed them to the Essex eatery, Dave Portnoy made his way to what was described as the "Taj Mahal of Pizza Places" for the latest "One Bite" review. "This is a huge operation," he said. "So I get (the nickname) ... It's a big space."  Dave stops by the "Taj Mahal of Pizza Shops" and …

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by Zak Failla
Obituaries
Construction Worker Killed In Building Collapse Dreamed Of Returning With Family To Guatemala Construction Worker Killed In Building Collapse Dreamed Of Returning With Family To Guatemala
Construction Worker Killed In Building Collapse Dreamed Of Returning With Family To Guatemala The family of a construction worker killed in a tragic building collapse in Washington, DC, last week, is working tirelessly to fulfill his final wish: returning his body to his native Guatemala for burial. Edgar Cifuentes was crushed under a two-story row house that collapsed early on Monday, Dec. 23 while working on a project in the 1100 block of V Street NW when the building came down. Cifuentes was stuck in a perilous position, and despite firefighters' best efforts, he was pronounced dead that afternoon after being rescued from the rubble. Following his death, Cifuentes was remem…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Fatal Double Birthday Party Shooting In Maryland Lands Four Teens Behind Bars: Sheriff Fatal Double Birthday Party Shooting In Maryland Lands Four Teens Behind Bars: Sheriff
Fatal Double Birthday Party Shooting In Maryland Lands Four Teens Behind Bars: Sheriff Detectives in Harford County wasted no time cracking down on a deadly shooting at a birthday party in Northern Maryland, arresting four teens within hours of the incident. Amir Dorsey, 18, and Quinton Jackson, 18, both of Edgewood, have been charged with illegal possession of ammunition, while a 17-year-old minor from Abingdon, charged as an adult, and Tyjeir Cole, 18, of Aberdeen, are facing charges of second-degree murder. The chaos unfolded around 12:30 a.m. Saturday on N. Sewards Court in Aberdeen, according to the Harford County Sheriff’s Office.  Deputies responding to reports o…

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by Zak Failla
Obituaries
Expectant Father Gunned Down In Baltimore Leaves Behind Sister Struggling To Bury Him Expectant Father Gunned Down In Baltimore Leaves Behind Sister Struggling To Bury Him
Expectant Father Gunned Down In Baltimore Leaves Behind Sister Struggling To Bury Him Justice may have been served for a single mother who suffered a tragic loss, though that won't bring her 27-year-old brother back after a midday shooting. Baltimore resident Maurice Prioleau, 28, has been arrested and charged with murder in connection to the fatal shooting of DeAngelo West the day after Christmas in a case of mistaken identity, leaving his family devastated. His older sister, Yasmine Coles said that West had recently moved in with her to help provide him a good home and so he could assist with her three children. Coles said that her brother was gunned down in broad dayligh…

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by Zak Failla
Lifestyle
Last Minute Grocery Run Before Thanksgiving Lands Manassas Man $1.6M Lottery Jackpot Last Minute Grocery Run Before Thanksgiving Lands Manassas Man $1.6M Lottery Jackpot
Last Minute Grocery Run Before Thanksgiving Lands Manassas Man $1.6M Lottery Jackpot A Manassas man could not believe his eyes after hitting a $1,610,754 jackpot in the Virginia Lottery’s Cash 5 with EZ Match game on a ticket picked up while he was running errands the day before Thanksgiving. “I did it!” Brian Morgan shouted to his wife, who was less than impressed: “Did what?” The answer would ultimately impress her.  Morgan matched all five numbers—22-23-27-36-41—in the Wednesday, Nov. 27 drawing, turning a regular grocery run into a life-changing windfall. The lucky ticket came from Giant Food on Dumfries Road in Manassas, where he used Easy Pick to let the c…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Coke, Cash Seized From Suspected Dealer In Northern Maryland: Officials Coke, Cash Seized From Suspected Dealer In Northern Maryland: Officials
Coke, Cash Seized From Suspected Dealer In Northern Maryland: Officials A suspected cocaine trafficker was arrested after a traffic stop in Carroll County led to a major drug bust, authorities said. Harford County resident Thomas Wayne Hawkins, 61, who was the target of a multi-agency investigation, is accused of transporting and selling large quantities of cocaine throughout the region, according to the Carroll County Drug and Firearms Task Force. Investigators stopped Hawkins’ car at approximately 1 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 16, in Carroll County for a traffic infraction.  During that stop, a spokesperson for the Task Force said that a K9 unit conducted an o…

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by Zak Failla
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