Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and his wife, Dr. Cerina Fairfax, are both dead after a murder-suicide in their Annandale, Virginia, home early Thursday morning.

Fairfax County police said Justin Fairfax, 47, shot his wife multiple times in the basement of their home on Guinevere Drive shortly after midnight. He then went upstairs to the primary bedroom and shot himself with the same gun. Both of their teenage children — a son and a daughter — were inside the house when it happened.

Their son called 911 just after midnight, telling the dispatcher he believed his mother had been stabbed. When officers arrived, they found bullet casings near Cerina Fairfax's body in the basement and Justin Fairfax upstairs with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

A Bitter Divorce Led to This

The couple had been separated since June 1, 2024 — but were still living under the same roof. Cerina told Justin she intended to divorce him on June 2, 2025, and formally filed on July 18, 2025. A divorce trial was scheduled to begin on April 21 — five days from now.

A judge had recently granted custody of both children to Cerina and ordered Justin to move out of the home by April 30. Police Chief Kevin Davis said Justin was served court paperwork recently about an upcoming hearing, and investigators believe that may have been the spark.

Warning Signs Were There

Court documents paint a picture of a man in deep decline. A custody judgment described Justin Fairfax as a "talented man who struggles with undefined emotional and psychological issues." Records showed he had become withdrawn, was binge drinking, and had failed to pay his share of household costs — including groceries.

Cerina Fairfax had testified in court that her husband's living space was littered with empty wine bottles and piles of dirty laundry. She installed multiple security cameras throughout the home during the divorce proceedings — a decision that would later prove significant.

In January 2026, Justin called police and accused Cerina of assaulting him. Officers reviewed the camera footage Cerina had installed and determined the alleged assault never happened. No arrests were made. The police chief confirmed the accusation was "proven to be untrue."

Court records also revealed that Justin purchased a handgun in 2022 with money that had been set aside for their children's horseback riding lessons.

Who Was Dr. Cerina Fairfax?

Dr. Cerina Wanzer Fairfax was 49 years old. She graduated from Duke University in 1999 with a bachelor of science degree, then earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2005, where she was inducted into the dental honor society Omicron Kappa Upsilon and named an Outstanding Graduate.

She ran her own dental practice — Dr. Fairfax and Associates Family Dentistry — in Fairfax, Virginia. She was active in community outreach programs, donated to local charities, and volunteered her time. On her practice's website, she wrote that it was "an honor and privilege" to serve her community.

Those who knew her described her as a devoted mother whose children were the center of her world. She loved reading, running trails with her dogs, practicing Bikram yoga, and traveling.

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger called her murder "a horrific tragedy" and said Cerina was "a devoted mother, beloved dentist, and engaged supporter of her alma mater."

Justin Fairfax's Rise and Fall

Justin Edward Fairfax was once one of the most watched Democrats in America. He graduated from Duke University and Columbia Law School, worked for the U.S. Attorney's Office, and built a career as an attorney. In 2017, he was elected Virginia's 41st lieutenant governor — only the second African American ever elected to statewide office in the state's history, after Douglas Wilder.

In early 2019, when Gov. Ralph Northam was engulfed in a scandal over a racist yearbook photo, many — including then-former Vice President Joe Biden — called for Fairfax to step up as the next governor. That changed within days.

Two women came forward with sexual assault accusations. Vanessa Tyson, a professor at Scripps College, said Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex in a hotel room during the 2004 Democratic National Convention. Days later, Meredith Watson accused Fairfax of raping her in 2000 when they were students at Duke. Fairfax denied both allegations, called them "demonstrably false," and said both encounters were consensual. He was never charged with a crime, but most Virginia Democrats abandoned him and called for his resignation. He refused to step down.

He ran for governor in 2021, saying he wanted to clear his name, but was soundly defeated in the Democratic primary. Court documents indicate his mental health deteriorated significantly after that loss and after the 2019 allegations. He and Cerina co-owned the dental practice, but his role in it — and in his own life — appeared to shrink steadily.

Timeline of Events

Community and Political Reactions

Virginia's political community expressed shock and grief throughout the day. Sen. Mark Warner called it "awful news" and said he was "still just processing this." Former Gov. Ralph Northam asked for prayers for the couple's children, Cameron and Carys. Former D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie, a childhood friend of Justin's, said he was "heartbroken beyond words."

Prince William County Supervisor Andrea Bailey, who had socialized with the couple, described screaming when she heard the news. Her husband, Virginia NAACP President Cozy Bailey, called Cerina "a superstar in her own right."

Police Chief Davis described the situation as "a fall from grace for a relatively high-profile family that seemingly had a lot of things going in their favor." The children are now with their grandparents. Fairfax County victim services is providing support.