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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

Traffic
Pedestrian Hit, Killed By Driver On Route 15 In Leesburg: Police (DEVELOPING) Pedestrian Hit, Killed By Driver On Route 15 In Leesburg: Police (DEVELOPING)
Pedestrian Hit, Killed By Driver On Route 15 In Leesburg: Police (Developing) A woman was struck and killed late Thursday night on a busy Leesburg roadway, police say. Around 11:35 p.m. on June 12, a Leesburg Police officer came across a crash near Route 15 (Leesburg Bypass) and Edwards Ferry Road NE, where an woman walking in the area had been hit by a car, officials said on Friday. Officers immediately called for emergency assistance, but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders, according to police. The driver of the involved vehicle remained on scene and is cooperating with the investigation, authorities noted. Police have not identified t…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Virginia Man Solicited Minor, Caught With Child Porn In Online Sting: Spotsy Sheriff Virginia Man Solicited Minor, Caught With Child Porn In Online Sting: Spotsy Sheriff
Virginia Man Solicited Minor, Caught With Child Porn In Online Sting: Spotsy Sheriff A Virginia man is behind bars after investigators say they found disturbing evidence of online child exploitation during a search of his home. Steven Devan was arrested on June 9, after the Spotsylvania Sheriff’s Office launched an investigation into an online account used by a man to solicit an underage girls, officials said Friday. Detectives executed a search warrant at Devan’s home in Spotsylvania, where they seized multiple electronic devices containing images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Devan is now facing the following charges, according to the sheriff’s office: 40 coun…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
Teen Sent Bomb Threat To Student At Forest Park High School, Police Say Teen Sent Bomb Threat To Student At Forest Park High School, Police Say
Teen Sent Bomb Threat To Student At Forest Park High School, Police Say A teenage student is facing consequences after allegedly texting a bomb threat to another student regarding a Virginia high school, police said. In late May, a School Resource Officer assigned to Forest Park High School in Woodbridge was called to investigate a reported bomb threat, according to the Prince William County Police Department. Police say the investigation determined that the student, a 15-year-old boy, “sent a threat of potential violence over text message to another student.” Officers identified the teen and determined there was no credible threat to other students, faculty, …

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
‘Devastating House Fire’ In Lorton Kills 2 Dogs, Destroys Home, Leaves Family Reeling ‘Devastating House Fire’ In Lorton Kills 2 Dogs, Destroys Home, Leaves Family Reeling
‘Devastating House Fire’ In Lorton Kills 2 Dogs, Destroys Home, Leaves Family Reeling A Virginia family is reeling after a fast-moving fire tore through their Lorton home, leaving it uninhabitable and claiming the lives of their two beloved dogs. The fire broke out in the 7500 block of Pollen Street in Lorton on Thursday, June 5, Fairfax County Fire and Rescue said. Crews arrived to find heavy smoke pouring from a split-level home, with fire in both the basement and kitchen. One person was taken to an area hospital for evaluations, officials said. Two dogs were found deceased inside the home. Firefighters quickly brought the blaze under control. No injuries were reported am…

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by Zak Failla
Traffic
Drunk Driver Crashes Chrysler In Stafford Ditch, Flees With Heineken Left Behind: Sheriff Drunk Driver Crashes Chrysler In Stafford Ditch, Flees With Heineken Left Behind: Sheriff
Drunk Driver Crashes Chrysler In Stafford Ditch, Flees With Heineken Left Behind: Sheriff An allegedly drunk driver was too fast and too furious before a "violent" crash that ended with a Chrysler in a Virginia ditch. A Stafford man is facing multiple charges after his Chrysler went airborne and crashed off Richmond Highway, sending him sprinting into the woods with a crushed Heineken left behind, the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office said. The crash was reported around 4:15 p.m. on Thursday, June 12, near Bells Hill Road. Witnesses told dispatchers the car “violently left the roadway” and briefly went airborne before crashing.  "Despite flying cars being something o…

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by Zak Failla
Traffic
Child Hospitalized, Adults Seriously Injured In Five-Car Montgomery County Crash: Officials Child Hospitalized, Adults Seriously Injured In Five-Car Montgomery County Crash: Officials
Child Hospitalized, Adults Seriously Injured In Five-Car Montgomery County Crash: Officials Two adults were seriously hurt and a child was hospitalized following a brutal five-vehicle crash that lit up Randolph Road in Maryland, authorities said. Firefighters responded to the crash just east of Connecticut Avenue around 8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 12, according to a Montgomery County Fire & Rescue spokesperson. Photos from the scene show at least five badly wrecked vehicles, including a commercial SUV with extensive front-end damage and another car torn apart down the middle of the roadway. Emergency responders rushed two adult trauma patients to local hospitals with serious inj…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Knife-Carrying Man Sparks Scare At Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School In Rockville: Police Knife-Carrying Man Sparks Scare At Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School In Rockville: Police
Knife-Carrying Man Sparks Scare At Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School In Rockville: Police A Germantown man caused concern at a Maryland Jewish day school after refusing to leave, driving through a pickup line, and resisting arrest with a knife on him, police said. Joseph Amr Khairy Abdalla, 38, was taken into custody around 3 p.m. Thursday, June 12, following a confrontation at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School on East Jefferson Street in Rockville, according to Montgomery County Police. Two off-duty officers working school security spotted Abdalla circling the parking lot without a valid student pickup pass around 2:54 p.m., police said. He was told to leave — but came ba…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Baby Shower Turns Violent As Indian Head Woman Rams Guests With Car In Waldorf: Sheriff Baby Shower Turns Violent As Indian Head Woman Rams Guests With Car In Waldorf: Sheriff
Baby Shower Turns Violent As Indian Head Woman Rams Guests With Car In Waldorf: Sheriff A Maryland baby shower turned into a demolition derby when a woman got behind the wheel and intentionally plowed into guests during a heated parking lot fight, police said. Robin Lessette Alexander, 53, of Indian Head, was arrested after a wild scene in Waldorf, where she is accused of striking several people with her vehicle after an argument, according to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office. It happened around 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 1, in the 1300 block of Smallwood Drive West. Investigators said Alexander was attending a baby shower when she got into a heated argument with another wom…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
Officer Shot In Face, Head, Arm With 20-Gauge Shotgun Near PA Border Identified: Police Officer Shot In Face, Head, Arm With 20-Gauge Shotgun Near PA Border Identified: Police
Officer Shot In Face, Head, Arm With 20-Gauge Shotgun Near PA Border Identified: Police A Maryland police officer who was shot in the face, head, and arm during a domestic violence barricade has been identified as K9 Officer Langley Dean, a 19-year veteran of the Hagerstown Police Department, authorities said. Dean was critically injured Thursday, June 12, when Daniel Matthew Anderson, 40, allegedly fired a 20-gauge shotgun at close range during a standoff on Forrest Drive, according to new information released by HPD on Friday, June 13. During a post-arrest search of the home, detectives and members of the Western Maryland Regional Crime Lab recovered the shotgun used in the …

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by Zak Failla
Obituaries
‘THE Team Mom’ From Upper Marlboro Dies; Richmond Basketball Star Honors Late Mother ‘THE Team Mom’ From Upper Marlboro Dies; Richmond Basketball Star Honors Late Mother
‘THE Team Mom’ From Upper Marlboro Dies; Richmond Basketball Star Honors Late Mother For nearly two decades, Melissa Richmond lived with chronic illness—but to everyone who knew her, she was nothing short of unstoppable. Richmond was a mother, a cheerleader, a fighter, and above all, the heartbeat of every room she entered—especially the Robins Center, where she proudly cheered on her son, DeLonnie Hunt, during his years as a standout guard for the University of Richmond Spiders men’s basketball team. Melissa passed away unexpectedly this week, leaving behind a deep well of grief among her family, friends, and the Richmond basketball community.  “My mother has been si…

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