Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife before turning the gun on himself at their home in northern Virginia, police said on Thursday (April 16), according to the Associated Press.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said the couple had been going through divorce proceedings at the time of the incident.
According to Davis, officers had previously responded to the home in January after Fairfax alleged that his wife had assaulted him.
“There are several cameras set up inside the house,” Davis said. “Mrs. Fairfax, at some point during these divorce proceedings, set up a lot of cameras inside the home. We reviewed those cameras, and we corroborated that the alleged assault never occurred. So, there was no arrest made.”
Teenage son’s 911 call leads police to scene
Authorities said the couple’s teenage son called 911 shortly after midnight, telling dispatchers he believed his mother had been stabbed. However, when officers arrived, they found bullet casings near Cerina Fairfax’s body, indicating she had been shot.
Police later discovered Justin Fairfax upstairs in the home with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said the shooting appeared to have unfolded rapidly, with no prolonged confrontation.
“I think it all kind of happened at once,” Davis said. “There wasn't a pause … it all happened pretty spontaneously.”
Couple was undergoing divorce proceedings
Davis described the incident as the culmination of an ongoing domestic dispute tied to a contentious divorce. Cerina Fairfax had filed for divorce in July last year.
“This has been an ongoing domestic dispute surrounding what seems to be a complicated or messy divorce,” Davis said during a Thursday morning briefing.
Children present at home during incident
He also highlighted the impact on the couple’s children, noting they were present in the home at the time.
“This is certainly a fall from grace for a relatively high-profile family that seemingly had a lot of things going for them,” Davis said. “Tragic for the children to lose both parents. Extra tragic for them to actually be in the home when it occurred.”
Justin Fairfax served as Virginia’s 41st lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022. Police said the investigation remains ongoing, though no other suspects are being sought.
