Fairfax County Police responded to a 911 call, just after midnight on April 16, to discover the bodies of recently deceased former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and his wife, Cerina Fairfax, at their home in Annandale. Both appeared to have died from gunshot wounds.
Detectives have determined that Justin Fairfax, 47, shot his wife multiple times, then shortly afterwards, turned the gun on himself. The couple was separated, but living together amid a divorce that Davis described as “messy.”
Fairfax County Chief of Police Kevin Davis spoke at a press conference outside their home in Annandale, Thursday morning. He said the two Fairfax children, both teenagers, were home when the tragedy occurred. The boy, who is the older sibling, called 911 for police to arrive during the “chaotic” situation.
Davis said police arrived within minutes and found the couple dead, Mrs. Fairfax was found in the basement, and Mr. Fairfax in the master bedroom. It appears the same gun was used in both shootings, and the former Lt. Governor killed himself almost immediately after shooting his wife.
Police have taken "a lot" of video cameras from the home and reviewed the sequence of events. Davis said Fairfax had set up the cameras.
According to a CNN article, the 911 call explains that the boy thought his dad had stabbed his mom and saw her bleeding and unresponsive. Police arrived looking for Mr. Fairfax, as their suspect, but found him dead as the result of gunshot wounds. They also recovered the gun there with him.
According to the Chief, this January, Mr. Fairfax had called police to their home in January of 2026, alleging his wife had assaulted him. Police reviewed the home cameras. They found no evidence of assault, so no one was charged.
Davis said the children are currently with relatives and are also getting assistance from the county police's victims unit. “It is tragic for the children to lose both parents,” he said, “even more tragic to be in the home when it occurred.”
“Certainly, this is a high-profile family,” said Davis, calling Mr. Fairfax a political “rising star” in Virginia during his time in office, and even afterwards. “It is certainly a fall from grace.
They do not know if drugs were involved, and they do not know if anyone had a history of mental illness. Davis did not identify the gun used, only that the same gun was used in the murder and suicide.
Recently, Cerina served her husband court papers as a court proceeding had been scheduled.
He said they were certainly undergoing the stress of the divorce, but that happens to many families, and “very, very rarely, thankfully, does it ever end up like this.”
Serena Wanzer Fairfax, 49, ran a dental practice and was a mother of two.
Justin Fairfax was an attorney. He was appointed Lt. Governor of Virginia by Gov. Ralph Northam-D and served from 2018-2022. Mr. Fairfax ran in the Democratic primary for Governor in 2021, but lost to Terry McAuliffe.
The former Lt. Governor was under scrutiny after two women accused him of sexual assault in 2019. He denied those allegations and was never charged.
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