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Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax fatally shot his wife, Dr. Cerina Fairfax, before killing himself inside their Annandale home amid a contentious divorce, Fairfax County police said Thursday.
Fairfax, 47, and his 49-year-old wife were found dead in their home in the 8100 block of Guinevere Drive after their teenage son called 911 shortly after midnight. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.
Police Chief Kevin Davis said Fairfax shot his wife several times in the basement, then went upstairs to the primary bedroom and used the same gun to kill himself.
The couple’s teenage son and daughter were home during the shooting but were not physically injured. Davis said the violence appeared to have unfolded quickly and spontaneously.
Investigators recovered a firearm and cartridge casings. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner was expected to confirm the causes and manners of death through autopsies.
Divorce proceedings preceded shooting
The Fairfaxes were separated but continued living in the same house. A judge had ordered Justin Fairfax to move out by the end of April.
Davis described the divorce as complicated and messy. He said Fairfax had apparently received paperwork connected to an upcoming court proceeding, which may have preceded the shooting.
In January, Fairfax accused his wife of assaulting him. Police investigated and determined the allegation was untrue, Davis said. Cerina Fairfax had installed several cameras inside the home during the divorce proceedings, and footage reviewed by investigators corroborated that the alleged assault did not occur.
Court records show Cerina Fairfax testified that her husband drank daily and left empty wine bottles and dirty laundry throughout his living space. She also said he used money intended for their children’s horseback-riding lessons to buy a handgun in 2022.
The filings described a decline in Justin Fairfax’s mental and emotional health following his unsuccessful 2013 campaign for the Democratic nomination for attorney general and the sexual assault allegations that derailed his political ambitions in 2019. According to the documents, he drank heavily and withdrew from his family after both setbacks. He recovered from the first episode after about a month but never rebounded from the second.
Davis emphasized that divorce is common and only very rarely ends in such violence.
Political career ended after allegations
Fairfax served as Virginia’s lieutenant governor from 2018 through 2022. Once considered a rising political figure, he faced sexual assault allegations from two women in 2019.
He denied both accusations, was not criminally charged and completed his term despite calls from lawmakers to resign.
Rather than seeking reelection as lieutenant governor, Fairfax ran for governor in 2021 and lost the Democratic primary. He later returned to practicing law.
Court filings also documented financial difficulties after the allegations. The IRS placed a lien of more than $91,000 in unpaid taxes against the couple, which was resolved in 2021.
Justin and Cerina Fairfax met at Duke University and married in 2006. Cerina Fairfax earned her doctor of dental surgery degree from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2005 and operated a family dentistry practice. Her professional biography described her commitment to community outreach and her interests in reading, trail running with her dogs and Bikram yoga.
Their deaths prompted condolences and tributes from local lawmakers.