Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Kills Wife Then Himself

Justin E. Fairfax, former lieutenant governor of Virginia, photographed during his time in office. (Public domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Fairfax County police responded to a home in the 8100 block of Guinevere Drive in Annandale, Virginia, shortly after midnight on April 16, 2026, following a 911 call from a teenager inside the residence, according to NBC Washington. The caller said his mother was bleeding and he did not know where his father was. When officers arrived, they found Dr. Cerina Fairfax, 49, dead in the basement of the home. Her husband, former Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, 47, was found dead in the primary bedroom upstairs. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said at a news conference that Justin Fairfax is believed to have shot his wife several times in the basement before going upstairs and turning the same firearm on himself. The couple’s two teenage children, a son and a daughter, were in the home at the time. The children are now with family members, Davis said. Security cameras that Cerina Fairfax had installed inside the home helped investigators corroborate the sequence of events, according to Davis.

A Divorce Case That Was Nearing Resolution

Court documents obtained by NBC Washington showed that Cerina Fairfax had filed for divorce in 2025. In March 2026, a county judge granted her custody of the couple’s teenage children and ordered Justin Fairfax to vacate the family home by the end of April. The couple had been living in separate bedrooms within the residence while proceedings continued.

Davis said the impending move-out order may have been a factor. “That may have been a spark,” he said, adding that detectives would work to determine what led to the incident. Court records cited by NBC Washington showed that Justin Fairfax had been fined $300 per day for failing to comply with existing court orders and had been directed to compensate his wife for money he owed her. The couple was scheduled to return to court the following Monday for the next phase of the divorce proceedings.

The Victim: Dr. Cerina Fairfax

Cerina Fairfax was a dentist who operated a family dental practice in Fairfax County and held membership in several professional associations, according to her practice’s website. She graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Dentistry, where she was recognized as an outstanding graduate. Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger issued a statement calling her “a devoted mother, beloved dentist in the Fairfax County community, and engaged supporter of her alma mater.” Prince William County Supervisor Andrea Bailey told NBC Washington she was devastated by the news, describing Cerina as brilliant and a well-known figure among Black female dentists in the Northern Virginia area.

A Political Career That Collapsed

Justin Fairfax had served as Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor from 2018 to 2022, becoming only the second African-American elected statewide in Virginia’s history. He was widely considered a rising figure in the Democratic Party and appeared positioned to seek higher office. In 2019, two women accused him of sexual assault. He denied the allegations and was never charged with a crime. His political career did not recover.

Court documents cited by NBC Washington stated that he struggled with alcoholism and increasing isolation following those allegations. A judge in the custody case wrote that “heavy daily alcohol consumption by the father has become the norm.” Records also showed that in 2022 he purchased a handgun using money intended for his children’s horseback riding lessons. Earlier in 2026, he called police and accused his wife of assaulting him; camera footage reviewed by investigators showed the alleged assault did not occur, and no charges were filed.

Investigation Ongoing, No Community Threat

Police said there is no threat to the broader community. The investigation into the circumstances of the deaths is ongoing, and investigators planned to obtain a search warrant for the home, according to NBC Washington. Davis described the outcome as “a fall from grace for a relatively high-profile family” and noted the particular difficulty for the children, who lost both parents in a single night inside their own home.

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or visit thehotline.org. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

References: Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax kills wife and himself amid divorce proceedings, police say | Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax kills his wife and then himself, police say