Former Virginia lieutenant governor Justin Fairfax has died in what authorities are describing as an apparent murder-suicide involving his wife at their home in Annandale, a suburb of Washington, DC.
Police said Fairfax, 47, allegedly shot and killed his wife, 49-year-old dentist Cerina Fairfax, before turning the gun on himself. The couple was discovered dead in their residence after their teenage son called police shortly after midnight to report the incident.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said the case appears to be connected to the couple’s ongoing divorce proceedings. He described the situation as deeply distressing for the community and for those who knew the family. “It’s very sad for this community,” Davis said. “A lot of people who know the Fairfax family. Everybody’s shocked. We’re shocked.”
According to reports from the Associated Press, Cerina and Justin Fairfax had separated in 2024 and filed for divorce the following year. Despite the separation and legal proceedings, police indicated the couple was still living in the same home in northern Virginia with their two children.
Authorities confirmed that both children were inside the home at the time of the shootings but were not physically harmed.
Fairfax was once considered a rising figure in Virginia’s Democratic Party. However, his political career became controversial in 2019 when he faced allegations of sexual assault while serving as lieutenant governor. He denied the accusations and described them as false.
Although there were calls for him to resign at the time, he remained in office and completed his term, which ended in 2022.
He later ran for governor in 2021 but received a small share of the vote and largely stepped away from public political life afterward.
Authorities have not released further details as the investigation continues, and officials have expressed condolences to those affected by the tragedy.
