Former Dem rising star Justin Fairfax kills wife and himself, police say
Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax fatally shot his wife, Cerina Fairfax, before killing himself in Annandale, according to Fairfax County Police
Police: Justin Fairfax had recently been served divorce papers
Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax had recently been served paperwork tied to the couple’s divorce proceedings before he fatally shot his wife, Cerina Fairfax, and then himself, according to Fairfax County police.
"We know that recently, Mr. Fairfax was served some type of paperwork indicating when he was scheduled to next appear in court for the ongoing divorce proceedings," Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said Thursday during a news conference.
"That is something that we're looking at as something that may have led to whatever happened last night that led to the murder of a mother and a wife, and a suicide."
Authorities also said the couple’s two children are teenagers and are now interacting with investigators as the case remains under review.
Police have described the shooting as a domestic-related murder-suicide inside the family’s Annandale home.
Court records cited by multiple outlets show the couple had been going through a divorce. Investigators have not released additional details about the teenagers’ interviews.
Cameras inside Fairfax home believed to be rolling at time of attack
Police believe cameras inside the Fairfax home might have been operating during the fatal attack, potentially capturing key evidence as former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife and himself with his teen children in the home.
"I believe they were" active and rolling during the "very chaotic" murder-suicide scene, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said at a Thursday news conference, saying "our detectives have gathered that certainly there's enough cameras inside the home that we're able to corroborate some" of the tragic events.
One of the children was the 911 caller just after midnight, Davis added.
"So he described some things to us as well that we've since corroborated."
The gun used to kill Cerina Fairfax, his wife, "seems to be the same gun that he used to kill himself," according to Davis.
Fairfax County Sheriffs are leading the investigation under a search warrant on the home Thursday morning.
"We're going to be here for a while," Davis admitted.
Justin Fairfax falsely accused wife of assault in January, police say
Police say former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax made a false domestic assault allegation against his wife months before the fatal shooting at the couple’s Annandale home.
Justin Fairfax called police in January and claimed that Cerina Fairfax had assaulted him, but police reportedly found no evidence of that.
"We responded to that scene," Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said at a Thursday news conference. "There are several cameras set up inside the house, apparently.
"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. There was a report written, but the allegation that Mr. Fairfax made in January that Mrs. Fairfax assaulted him was proven to be untrue."
The disclosure adds to the emerging picture of turmoil inside the home in the months before police say Justin Fairfax shot and killed Cerina Fairfax, then turned the gun on himself.
Cerina Fairfax, shot and killed by former Dem rising star, led family dentistry practice
Cerina Fairfax was shot and killed early Thursday at the family’s Annandale home, where police say former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax fatally shot her before killing himself.
Fairfax, who was pursuing a divorce but living under the same roof, led Dr. Fairfax & Associates Family Dentistry.
"We know that recently, Mr. Fairfax was served some type of paperwork indicating when he was scheduled to next appear in court for the ongoing divorce proceedings," Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said Thursday during a news conference.
"That is something that we're looking at as something that may have led to whatever happened last night that led to the murder of a mother and a wife, and a suicide."
According to the family practice website, Fairfax earned a bachelor’s degree from Duke University in 1999, then received her doctor of dental surgery degree magna cum laude from Virginia Commonwealth University’s Medical College of Virginia School of Dentistry in 2005.
Fox News' Adriana Rodil-James contributed to this report.
Teen children were in house during shooting, police say: 'Very chaotic'
Police said the Fairfax's two teenage children were inside the home during the fatal shooting, with one of them making the 911 call as the violence unfolded.
"Obviously, we have two teenage children who were in the house," Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis at a Thursday news conference.
"The son was the one who who called 911 during a very chaotic situation, and I can only imagine."
Police said former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife, Cerina Fairfax, before fatally shooting himself at the family’s Annandale home shortly after midnight
"Our main concern is for their well-being right now, they are interacting with us," Davis added.
Authorities said the couple had been going through a divorce.
Fairfax, wife were separated while living in same home, divorce docs show
Divorce records show Cerina Fairfax alleged that she and Justin Fairfax “separated on June 1, 2024, while residing under the same roof,” an arrangement that later became central to a court fight over whether she had properly pleaded an intent to end the marriage.
In a Jan. 16 opinion, a Fairfax County judge sustained Justin Fairfax’s demurrer, finding that the complaint did not adequately allege that intent at the time of separation.
“In the present case, Wife failed to plead her intent,” Judge David A. Oblon wrote, concluding that the complaint did not state enough facts for the court to infer she intended a permanent separation beginning in June 2024.
He also wrote that the postnuptial agreement, which included optimistic language about preserving the marriage, “tends to negate her argued intent.”
Former Democrat Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax was found dead in an apparent murder-suicide on Thursday morning, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
Fairfax served as the 41st lieutenant governor under Gov. Ralph Northam between Jan. 13, 2018, to Jan. 15, 2022.
He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania before moving to Annandale.
Fairfax shared two children with his wife.
This is an Ashley J. DiMella report. Get the full story here.
Fmr Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot, killed his wife and then himself
Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife, Cerina Fairfax, before turning the gun on himself, according to Fairfax County Police.
Authorities said officers responded shortly after midnight Thursday to a home on the 8100 block of Guinevere Drive in Annandale, where they found both Justin Fairfax and Cerina Fairfax dead from gunshot wounds.
Police said a preliminary investigation indicates Justin Fairfax shot his wife before killing himself.
The case is being investigated as a domestic-related murder-suicide, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Justin Fairfax served as Virginia’s lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022.
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