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Wednesday, jun 18

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

Police & Fire

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…

by Zak Failla

06/13/2025

Police & Fire

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…

by Zak Failla

06/13/2025

Police & Fire

Hagerstown Officer Shot In Face, Head, Arm With 20-Gauge Shotgun 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 …

by Zak Failla

06/13/2025

Obituaries

‘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…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

Lifestyle

‘Home Alone’ Actor David Stern Sings B-cc High Fight Song In Viral Instagram Video Maryland native David Stern has not forgotten his Maryland roots. Sporting a T-shirt from his hometown, the Home Alone star shared a video on Instagram in which he sang and danced while singing "It's On The Roof!" the fight song of his alma mater, Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School. Stern, now 67, provided his rendition on the classic song, though he shared some misgivings about some of the more curious lyrics in the song. "Unless you went to B-CC High School back in the 1970’s, it is probably best if you don’t watch this," he posted, "apologizing in advance" before breaking into song and da…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

Police & Fire

Maryland Man Tried To Meet ‘Child’ For Sex, Arrested In Online Sting: Police A Maryland man thought he was meeting a child for sex. He met the cops instead, authorities said. Joshua Andrew Mills, 35, of Hagerstown, was arrested Wednesday, June 11, after allegedly trying to meet a minor for sex during an undercover sting, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office announced. Detectives with the Digital Investigation and Forensics Unit and the Criminal Investigations Unit posed as underage children online. Officers engaged with adults through social media apps and chat platforms, investigators said. When suspects “attempted to arrange in-person meetings for illega…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

Police & Fire

North East Man Freed After Child’s Body Dumped In Lot; Prosecutors Opposed Bond: Officials A Maryland man charged in connection with the killing of a 3-year-old girl whose mother allegedly dumped her body in a vacant lot has been released on bond and placed on home detention, authorities confirmed. Cedric Antoine Britten, 44, of North East, was released Thursday, June 12, on $75,000 cash bond and home detention, despite prosecutors’ request that he remain behind bars in connection with the death of 3-year-old Nola Dinkens, the Cecil County State’s Attorney’s Office announced. Britten is charged in Maryland as an accessory after the fact to murder and for failing to report a child…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

Police & Fire

Hagerstown Man Beat Wife, Shot Officer With Shotgun, Then Barricaded With Gun: Police (Updated) A Maryland father is accused of assaulting his wife with children in the house, then shooting a responding officer with a shotgun during an hours-long standoff that ended in his arrest, authorities said. Daniel Matthew Anderson, 40, was taken into custody around 4:35 p.m. Thursday, June 12, after barricading himself for more than eight hours inside a home on Forrest Drive, according to the Hagerstown Police Department. Officers first responded to the home around 5 a.m. for a domestic violence assault call. Anderson’s wife, who showed “clear signs of being assaulted,” let officers ins…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

Obituaries

MTV Icon Ananda Lewis Dies After Stage 4 Breast Cancer Battle At 52 Ananda Lewis, a fixture on MTV in the 90s, has died after a battle with breast cancer, family members announced Wednesday, June 11 on Facebook. She was 52. A Howard University graduate, Lewis got her big break when she auditioned for an on-screen job hosting "Teen Summit" on BET in DC, where she discussed serious issues impacting young adults. Among the highlights of her early career was a 1996 interview with then-First Lady Hillary Clinton about her book. Lewis went on to be a video jockey with MTV, where she hosted and "VJed" multiple shows, including "Total Request Live," which wa…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

News

Toddler Suffered Blunt Force Injuries, Broken Ribs Before DC Mom's Murder Conviction: DOJ A mother from DC has been convicted of murdering her 16-month-old daughter Rhythm Fields, who was found lifeless and cold inside a Southeast apartment in 2017, federal prosecutors announced. Faneisha Scott, 39, was found guilty Wednesday, June 11, of murder and other offenses following an incident that claimed the life of Fields, according to the US Attorney's Office. Specifically, Scott was found guilty on Wednesday of first-degree murder, first-degree cruelty to children (willful maltreatment), and second-degree cruelty to children. The verdict came eight years after Scott’s daughter was…

by Zak Failla

06/12/2025

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