ANNANDALE, VA — Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax fatally shot his wife before killing himself in their home Thursday morning while their two teenage children were inside, police said.
The murder-suicide occurred amid contentious divorce proceedings between Fairfax, 47, and his wife Dr. Cerina W. Fairfax, according to Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis. The couple’s teenage son called 911 shortly after midnight after discovering his mother shot multiple times in the basement. Fairfax then went upstairs to the primary bedroom where he shot and killed himself with the same weapon, Davis said during a Thursday morning news conference.
Police responded to the 8100 block of Guinevere Drive in Annandale around midnight Thursday for what was initially reported as a stabbing. “Caller stating that his dad might have stabbed his mom,” a dispatcher said in emergency audio obtained by Broadcastify. “She’s lying on the ground bleeding” with holes in her shirt, the caller reported. Officers found bullet casings near Cerina Fairfax’s body in the basement. “I think this is going to be our subject. He’s got a firearm with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,” an officer said on dispatch audio after locating Justin Fairfax upstairs.
The shootings stemmed from “an ongoing domestic dispute surrounding what seems to be a complicated or messy divorce,” Davis said. Court records show Cerina Fairfax filed for divorce on July 18, 2025, with the case still pending. Justin Fairfax was recently served paperwork indicating when he was scheduled to appear in court on April 21 for divorce proceedings. “That may have been a spark,” Davis said. “Detectives will figure out if that led to this tragedy here.” The couple had been separated but living together in separate bedrooms. Police had responded to prior domestic-related calls at the home, including one in January when Justin Fairfax alleged his wife assaulted him. However, Davis said the alleged assault “never occurred” and was “proven to be untrue” based on camera footage Cerina Fairfax had installed during divorce proceedings.
Court documents paint a picture of Justin Fairfax’s deteriorating mental state following sexual assault allegations that derailed his political career in 2019. Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Timothy J. McEvoy wrote in a March 30 custody order that Fairfax struggled with “undefined emotional and psychological issues” and had “cloistered himself” in his home since leaving office in 2022. The judge noted Fairfax’s “heavy daily alcohol consumption” had become routine and that he had withdrawn from family life, allowing the mortgage to go into default multiple times. In 2022, Fairfax purchased a handgun with money intended for his children’s horseback riding lessons and left home with the weapon and a suitcase of clothes. Family members found him “in the woods of a public park” experiencing “some kind of adverse psychological event,” according to court records.
Fairfax served as Virginia’s lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022 under Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam and was once considered a rising political star. His career was derailed in 2019 when two women accused him of sexual assault years earlier. Vanessa Tyson alleged Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex in a hotel room during the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston when he was a Columbia Law School student. Meredith Watson accused him of rape in 2000 when they were Duke University students. Fairfax adamantly denied both allegations, calling the encounters consensual and requesting an FBI investigation. He refused calls to resign and ran unsuccessfully for Virginia governor in 2021. The allegations deeply affected Fairfax, who was found “clutching a pillow and a blanket in a closet” in his home office, saying “everyone was out to get him,” according to court documents.
The judge awarded custody of the couple’s children, ages 16 and 14, to Cerina Fairfax last month and ordered Justin Fairfax to leave their home by April 30. The couple was scheduled to return to court Monday for a three-day trial concerning asset division. Cerina Fairfax had characterized her husband as emotionally withdrawn and alleged he “had chosen not to be a productive member of the family.” She requested that he undergo alcohol testing one hour before visits with their children. The divorce filing stated “there is no expectation or hope of reconciliation between the parties” and alleged Justin Fairfax “does not make any financial contributions to support the Wife and their children.” Virginia court records show Fairfax was twice sued in recent years over thousands of dollars in unpaid debts, with both cases resulting in default judgments against him.
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger expressed shock at the tragedy in a statement Thursday. “I am deeply saddened by the tragedy that occurred last night. I am praying for the Fairfax children, and I ask my fellow Virginians to hold them in their hearts and prayers,” she said. “The murder of Dr. Cerina Fairfax in an apparent murder-suicide is a horrific tragedy. Dr. Fairfax was a devoted mother, beloved dentist in the Fairfax County community.” Former Gov. Ralph Northam said he and his wife Pam were “devastated by this heartbreaking news.” Sen. Mark Warner, who had worked with Fairfax for over a decade, called it “awful news” and noted the tragedy that the teenage children were in the house. Peter DeMeo, a 32-year neighbor, said he thought “a lot about the children. Both parents are gone now. What does that do for them and their futures?”
Police executed a search warrant at the Annandale residence to recover evidence, including the firearm used in both shootings, which has not yet been located. The couple’s teenage children are being supported by grandparents and other family members with assistance from the Fairfax County Police Department’s victim services division. Detectives reviewed extensive camera footage from surveillance equipment Cerina Fairfax had installed throughout the home as part of the divorce proceedings, Davis said.
