Former Virginia lieutenant governor Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife Cerina in their Annandale home early Thursday before turning the gun on himself, police said.
The incident occurred just weeks after a judge ordered Fairfax to move out of the family home by April 30 and granted his estranged wife primary custody of their two teenage children, according to court documents reviewed by The Washington Post. Their son called 911 after hearing gunfire in the basement where Cerina, a successful dentist, was shot.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said the killings took place amid an ongoing domestic dispute tied to a complicated divorce. Officers found Justin Fairfax, 47, dead in an upstairs bedroom after he fatally shot his wife, 49, in the basement. The couple had been living together despite separating nearly two years earlier, with their children present in the home at the time of the shooting.
Court records show the judge overseeing the divorce had noted rising tensions in the household for an extended period. In a March 30 order, the judge wrote that it was clear tensions had been extremely high and directed Fairfax to vacate the home by the end of April. Cerina Fairfax was granted primary physical custody of their two children.
The judge also cited Fairfax’s declining mental and emotional health following two major setbacks: his unsuccessful 2013 bid for attorney general and the 2019 sexual assault allegations that derailed his political career. After both events, Fairfax drank heavily and withdrew from family life, but while he recovered from the first setback within a month, he never rebounded from the second.
Cerina Fairfax testified during divorce proceedings that her husband consumed alcohol daily, leaving empty wine bottles and piles of dirty laundry throughout his living space. In 2022, he purchased a handgun using funds meant for horseback riding lessons for their children, court records show. He later told relatives the weapon was for personal security after being found in a park with the firearm and a packed suitcase.
Fairfax’s political downfall began in 2019 when two women accused him of sexual assault stemming from encounters before his marriage. He maintained the interactions were consensual and refused to resign, despite growing pressure within the Democratic Party. His attempt to run for governor in 2021 ended in a distant fourth-place finish with just 3.54% of the vote, leaving him largely isolated from party leaders.
A longtime friend told The Associated Press that Fairfax became increasingly despondent after his wife filed for divorce. Sophia A. Nelson, a Virginia author and journalist who described him as a close friend, said he never moved past the 2019 scandal. The judge in the divorce case described Fairfax as a talented man struggling with undefined emotional and psychological issues that limited his ability to fulfill roles including that of a father.
This was not the first time police had responded to the Fairfax residence. Chief Davis said officers had been called to the home in January of this year after Justin Fairfax accused his wife of assault. No charges were filed following that incident.
What led to the breakdown of Justin and Cerina Fairfax’s marriage?
Cerina Fairfax testified that they separated nearly two years ago but continued living under the same roof with their two teenage children. Court documents show rising tensions, daily alcohol consumption by Justin Fairfax and his withdrawal from family life following the 2019 sexual assault allegations, which he denied but never overcame emotionally.
Why did Justin Fairfax’s political career collapse after his lieutenant governorship?
His tenure as lieutenant governor was upended in 2019 when two women accused him of sexual assault. Despite denying the allegations and refusing to resign, he was shunned by Virginia Democrats and defeated in the 2021 gubernatorial primary, ending his prospects for higher office.
