Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, whose political career was destroyed by sexual assault allegations he denied for years, killed his wife and himself just weeks after a judge ordered him to leave his family home and lost custody of his children amid evidence of “heavy daily alcohol” use and erratic behavior.
by Nij Martin
Why did he do it? That is the question haunting Virginia after former Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax shot and killed his wife, Cerina, then turned the gun on himself in their home early Thursday. Their teenage children were inside. Their son called 911.
The answer is not simple. But the court documents tell a story of a man coming apart. Fairfax, once a rising star in Virginia’s Democratic Party, saw his career destroyed by sexual assault allegations he spent years denying. Shunned by his party, he came in fourth place in the 2021 gubernatorial primary. After his term ended in 2022, something broke.
According to court records, “heavy daily alcohol” use became routine. His wife testified that he grew insular, spending more time alone in his room. Empty wine bottles and trash littered their living space. In 2022, he bought a gun — using money meant for their children’s horseback-riding lessons. He later left home with the firearm and a suitcase. His wife, her stepfather, and a relative went looking for him.
Judge Timothy J. McEvoy, in a March 30 opinion, wrote: “Together, these facts paint a vivid picture of Father as a talented man who struggles with undefined emotional and psychological issues. Yet there can be no mistake that these undefined issues are in fact defining him and limiting his ability to be the person he is capable of being, including but not limited to the role of a dad.”
The judge granted Cerina primary custody and ordered Justin to move out by April 30. He never made it. Police Chief Kevin Davis said, “This has been an ongoing domestic dispute surrounding what seems to be a complicated or messy divorce.”
Why did he do it? Alcohol. Isolation. A gun. A career in ruins. And a man who could not see another way out. But none of that explains why two children now have no parents.
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