DeMatha Catholic High School has released a formal statement remembering former Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax as a 'model student' and dedicated alumnus, hours after Fairfax County police confirmed he shot and killed his wife before turning the gun on himself at the family's Annandale home.
Officers from the Fairfax County Police Department responded to the 8100 block of Guinevere Drive just after midnight on 16 April 2026, where they found both Justin Fairfax, 47, and his wife Dr. Cerina W. Fairfax dead inside the residence.
DeMatha Catholic High School's Tribute to the Class of 1996
In a statement posted to the school's official Instagram account, DeMatha Catholic High School president Fr. Albert Anuszewski, O.SS.T. addressed both the school community and those connected to Gonzaga and St. Paul VI, the schools attended by the Fairfax children. 'The DeMatha community would like to express our sympathies and prayerful support to the family of Justin and Cerina Fairfax,' the statement reads.
Fr. Anuszewski described Fairfax's time at DeMatha in affirmative terms. 'During his time at DeMatha, Justin was a model student who was engaged in many activities including being named class president and a member of the chorus and mock trial team,' the statement reads. 'He was awarded a scholarship to Duke University and he was the student representative on the university's Board.' The statement also notes that Fairfax was a graduate of Columbia School of Law.
The school's tribute acknowledged the years that followed Fairfax's graduation in 1996. 'In the ensuing years, Justin remained close to his DeMatha family and supported the school, attending many events and was the commencement speaker at graduation in 2012,' Fr. Anuszewski wrote.
The statement concluded with prayers for Fairfax's children and all those affected, closing: 'May their souls rest in the eternal peace of Christ.'
The Events of 16 April 2026 and the Divorce Proceedings
FCPD Chief Kevin Davis described the circumstances leading to the shooting at a press conference confirmed by NBC4 Washington and WUSA9. Davis said the couple were separated but living together in separate bedrooms. Court records show Dr. Cerina Fairfax had filed for divorce. Davis told reporters that Fairfax had been served with court paperwork scheduling an upcoming hearing in the divorce proceedings, and that the document 'may have been a spark' for what followed.
Davis also disclosed a prior incident earlier this year. In January 2026, Justin Fairfax called police and alleged that his wife had assaulted him. Surveillance cameras that Dr. Fairfax had installed inside the home showed the alleged assault never took place. 'We reviewed those cameras, and we corroborated that the alleged assault never occurred,' Davis said. No arrests were made and no charges were filed in connection with that incident.
The Fairfax children, a son and a daughter, both teenagers, are now staying with family members. Davis characterised the situation as 'certainly a fall from grace for a relatively high-profile family that seemingly had a lot of things going in their favor,' adding it was 'extra tragic for them to be in the home when it occurred.'
The police department's victim services division is supporting the family. The investigation remains open, and authorities planned to execute a search warrant at the home.
Justin Fairfax's Rise, Derailment, and Later Career
Justin Fairfax served as the 41st Lieutenant Governor of Virginia from 2018 to 2022, becoming only the second African-American elected statewide in Virginia after Douglas Wilder. His election came during a period in which he was widely regarded as a future Democratic standard-bearer in the state, and he briefly appeared poised to succeed Ralph Northam as governor after a controversy over a racist photograph in Northam's medical school yearbook.
That trajectory was interrupted in early 2019 when two women separately alleged Fairfax had sexually assaulted them, in incidents they said occurred in 2000 and 2004. Fairfax denied both allegations, called for a full investigation to clear his name, and was never charged with a crime. He remained in office for the remainder of his term but ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2021, finishing fourth in the Democratic primary with 3.54% of the vote. After leaving public office in 2022, he worked as an attorney.
Two children have lost both parents in a single night, and a school that shaped them mourns one of its own under the most devastating of circumstances.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, help is available 24 hours a day. Call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
