Fair 65°

Zak Failla

Assistant Managing Editor

zfailla@dailyvoice.com

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

Police & Fire
Stafford Woman With Prior DUIs Crashes BMW With Kids In Backseat: Sheriff Stafford Woman With Prior DUIs Crashes BMW With Kids In Backseat: Sheriff
Stafford Woman With Prior DUIs Crashes BMW With Kids In Backseat: Sheriff A Virginia woman no stranger to DUI stops is back behind bars after crashing her BMW while allegedly drunk — with two children in the backseat, authorities said. Lidia Cruz, 40, of Stafford, was arrested early on Thursday morning after slamming into an unoccupied Volkswagen for what she initially explained was because of "distracted driving," according to the sheriff's office. Deputies from the. Stafford County Sheriff's Office were called shortly before 12:45 a.m. on April 17 to Little Oak Road to investigate the crash, where they were met by Cruz and the children. The crash s…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Edgemere Woman, 80, Killed In House Fire With No Working Smoke Alarms: Officials Edgemere Woman, 80, Killed In House Fire With No Working Smoke Alarms: Officials
Edgemere Woman, 80, Killed In House Fire With No Working Smoke Alarms: Officials An 80-year-old woman died after being trapped inside a burning home in Baltimore County — where firefighters later discovered there were no working smoke detectors, officials said. Crews were called around 6:07 p.m. Thursday, April 17, to the 8900 block of Millers Island Boulevard in Edgemere, where fire was pouring from the rear of the home, according to the Baltimore County Fire Department. Two people were rescued by police officers at the scene before fire crews arrived, officials said, but the third resident — 80-year-old Georgia Norris — could not be located. Firefighters entered the …

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Officer Seriously Hurt When Drunk Driver Slams Cruiser In Fort Washington, Police Say Officer Seriously Hurt When Drunk Driver Slams Cruiser In Fort Washington, Police Say
Officer Seriously Hurt When Drunk Driver Slams Cruiser In Fort Washington, Police Say A Prince George’s County Police officer is recovering in the hospital after being struck by a suspected drunk driver while responding to a separate crash on Indian Head Highway, officials said. It happened early Friday morning, April 18, in the Fort Washington area, where a Division VII patrol officer was on scene to assist with a road closure. Police say the officer had just stepped out of his cruiser and was placing flares when a southbound driver on Route 210 slammed into the cruiser, which then struck the officer and launched him into a nearby guardrail. The officer was rushed to the h…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Lexington Park Teens Charged As Adults After Man Shot In Face, Sheriff Says Lexington Park Teens Charged As Adults After Man Shot In Face, Sheriff Says
Lexington Park Teens Charged As Adults After Man Shot In Face, Sheriff Says Two Maryland teens are facing attempted murder charges as adults after allegedly shooting a man in the face during a violent overnight encounter in Lexington Park, the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office announced. Deputies responded to the 46000 block of Marshall Boulevard around 1 a.m. March 5, for reports of shots fired in the area, where they found a man suffering from a gunshot wound to the face. The victim survived, but the shooting kicked off a major investigation that came to its conclusion this week. On Thursday, April 17, detectives with the Criminal Investigations Division arrest…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Convicted Sex Offender In Maryland Transferred To ICE For Removal To Honduras: Officials Convicted Sex Offender In Maryland Transferred To ICE For Removal To Honduras: Officials
Convicted Sex Offender In Maryland Transferred To ICE For Removal To Honduras: Officials A convicted sex offender in Maryland is now in the custody of federal immigration officials after serving part of a 10-year sentence, ICE announced. Kelvin Emanuel Granados-Sorto, 30, a Honduran national who entered the US illegally, was arrested by ICE on Thursday, April 11, after being transferred from the Maryland Department of Corrections, according to federal officials. Granados-Sorto was convicted in Prince George’s County on May 12, 2023, of a third-degree sex offense. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. ICE lodged a detainer on him two months later, in July 2023. Federal offici…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Pedestrian, 19, Killed By DWI Driver In Alexandria Hit-Run Crash: Police Pedestrian, 19, Killed By DWI Driver In Alexandria Hit-Run Crash: Police
Pedestrian, 19, Killed By DWI Driver In Alexandria Hit-Run Crash: Police A 19-year-old was killed and a driver is in custody following a DWI crash that sent shockwaves through a busy Virginia neighborhood, police said. Abdullahi Mumin died after being hit by a driver along the 4700 block of King Street on Wednesday night, April 16, according to the Alexandria Police Department. Officers were called around 8:38 p.m. for a report of a crash involving a pedestrian and arrived to find Mumin critically injured alongside a downed electrical pole, authorities said.  He was rushed to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries. The driver, identified a…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Vandals Break Into Virginia Zoo, Trash Exhibits, Terrify Animals With Joyride (VIDEO) Vandals Break Into Virginia Zoo, Trash Exhibits, Terrify Animals With Joyride (VIDEO)
Vandals Break Into Virginia Zoo, Trash Exhibits, Terrify Animals With Joyride (Video) A pack of late-night vandals broke into a Northern Virginia zoo, damaged animal enclosures, and took work vehicles for a joyride — all while terrifying the animals, officials said. The chaos unfolded overnight on Tuesday, April 15, at the NOVA Wild Zoo, a popular family destination in Fairfax County. According to zoo management, several people forced their way into the park, caused damage to multiple exhibits, and even got into the capybara enclosure. The intruders then took work vehicles and rode recklessly through the property. Staff returned to find the aftermath — broken fencing, trash…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Cop Who Flagged Deported Dad For Gang Ties Was Later Fired For Misconduct: Police Cop Who Flagged Deported Dad For Gang Ties Was Later Fired For Misconduct: Police
Cop Who Flagged Deported Dad For Gang Ties Was Later Fired For Misconduct: Police A Maryland police officer who helped document a man later deported to El Salvador was fired for misconduct in an unrelated case, officials confirmed on Thursday. One of the detectives involved in a 2019 police stop that flagged Kilmar Abrego Garcia as showing signs of MS-13 gang affiliation was later terminated from the Prince George’s County Police Department (PGPD) for misconduct in another matter, according to a new statement released by the agency. The department said on Thursday, April 17, that former officer Ivan Mendez helped conduct the stop and generate an internal gang intelligenc…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
News
Maryland Man Who Preyed On Young Girl For Years Learns Fate In Court: Prosecutors Maryland Man Who Preyed On Young Girl For Years Learns Fate In Court: Prosecutors
Maryland Man Who Preyed On Young Girl For Years Learns Fate In Court: Prosecutors A Maryland man will spend decades behind bars for repeatedly sexually abusing a young child in his household, prosecutors announced. Enemias Bautista Perez, 38, of Greensboro, was sentenced to 25 years in prison in Wicomico County for sexually abusing a minor under the age of 9, the maximum penalty allowed under Maryland law for that charge, officials said Thursday. That sentence will run consecutively to a separate 25-year term in Caroline County for abusing the same victim, good for 50 years. Perez pleaded guilty in Wicomico County back in January.  Investigators said most of the a…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Two Dead In Charles County House Fire Made Worse By Hoarding, Officials Say Two Dead In Charles County House Fire Made Worse By Hoarding, Officials Say
Two Dead In Charles County House Fire Made Worse By Hoarding, Officials Say Deadly hoarding conditions inside a Maryland home made rescue efforts difficult after a fire broke out early Thursday, leaving two dead and one survivor, authorities said. The flames were already ripping through a Brunswick Road home in Faulkner when firefighters arrived shortly after 6:15 a.m. on April 17, according to the Maryland State Fire Marshal. Crews from the Bel Alton Volunteer Fire Department and other nearby agencies were told that two people might still be inside the burning house, but extreme hoarding conditions made getting to them nearly impossible. It took 50 firefighters c…

SHARE

by Zak Failla
Prev Page 1 of 3318 1 2 3 4 5 Next
1 - 10 of 33,171 articles