Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax kills wife and then himself, police say

Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax fatally shot his wife, Cerina Fairfax, and himself inside their home overnight, according to local police.

Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said at a news conference Thursday morning that their teenage children were at the house in Annandale, Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C., when the shootings occurred.

“Former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife inside of their home and then shot and killed himself,” Davis said, adding that their older son called 911 just after midnight.

Fairfax killed his wife in the basement of the home, and then went upstairs to the primary bedroom and shot and killed himself, Davis said.

It is unclear what caused the shootings. The police chief described the incident as the result of a “domestic dispute surrounding what seems to be a complicated or messy divorce.” The couple was still living together, but in separate bedrooms, he said.

Police are in the preliminary stage of the investigation, but Davis said Fairfax was recently served paperwork indicating when he was scheduled to next appear in court for the ongoing divorce proceedings.

“That may have been a spark,” Davis said, “And detectives will figure that out, that led to this tragedy here.”

Police have a search warrant to recover evidence, including the firearm that Fairfax used.

The former lieutenant governor, who was 47, served in the role from 2018 to 2022 under Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam. He has previously spoken out against the growing scourge of gun violence.

In 2019, two women accused Fairfax of sexual assault years earlier, prompting Virginia Democrats to call for his resignation. Meredith Watson claimed Fairfax raped her in 2000 while they were students at Duke University. Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex in 2004 when they attended the Democratic National Convention in Boston.

Fairfax denied the accusations, saying the encounters with the women were consensual. He said he would remain in office and called for an FBI investigation into the claims.

When he ran in the Democratic primary for governor in 2021, Fairfax, who was Black, said during the gubernatorial debate he was treated like George Floyd and Emmett Till when Democrats immediately called for his resignation after the women made the allegations.

Davis said Fairfax was a “rising star politically” in Virginia. “It’s high-profile in nature. It’s tragic in nature — certainly a fall from grace for a relatively high-profile family that seemingly had a lot of things going in their favor. So tragic for the children to lose both parents, extra tragic for them to actually be in the home when it occurred.”

Victim services are assisting the teenage son and daughter who are in high school, Davis said.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visitSpeakingOfSuicide.com/resourcesfor additional resources.

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