BREAKING: Former Dem Lt. Gov. Found Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide, Police Confirm
Tyler O'Neil /
Police in Fairfax County, Virginia, confirmed Thursday that they found former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax dead in his home in an apparent murder-suicide.
“I’m here to confirm the identity of our shooter in this murder-suicide that happened several hours ago as former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax,” Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said in a press conference Thursday morning. “Fairfax shot and killed his wife inside of their home and then shot and killed himself.”
“This has been an ongoing domestic dispute surrounding what seems to be a complicated or messy divorce,” he added.
Fairfax reportedly shot and killed his wife in the basement, then went to his bedroom and shot and killed himself. The former lieutenant governor had accused his wife of assaulting him in January, but when police investigated, they found that “the alleged assault never occurred,” the chief explained.
The couple’s teenage son and daughter were at home at the time, police said.
Davis said the shooting was “certainly a traumatic event for those children to live through.”
The police chief described the shooting as a “fall from grace for a relatively high-profile family.” He described it as “tragic for the children to lose both parents,” and “extra tragic” that they were in the home when it happened.
Fairfax served as Virginia’s lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022, alongside Gov. Ralph Northam.
Two women accused Fairfax of sexual assault in 2019. Vanessa Tyson accused Fairfax of forcing her to perform oral sex in 2004. Meredith Watson accused him of raping her in 2000, when both were at Duke University. Both accusers are black, as was Fairfax.
Fairfax compared the accusations to lynching, and denied the accusations in both cases. He married his wife Cerina in 2006.
“My heart goes out to the Fairfax family today, particularly the children,” former Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, wrote on X. “For anyone struggling with this kind of darkness, the most courageous thing you can do is ask for help. There is more help and friendship out there than we realize.”
He quoted Isaiah 41:10: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
This is a breaking news story and may be updated.