Cerina Fairfax: Beloved dentist and devoted mother killed by husband, former Virginia lieutenant governor

(CNN) — Cerina Fairfax, remembered by those who knew her as a devoted mother and caring dentist, was killed by her husband, former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, inside their Virginia home this week, authorities said.

Fairfax described herself as someone who loved “to read, run trails with her energetic Vizslas, practice Bikram yoga, travel, and spend time with her wonderful family.” She leaves behind an “enduring legacy of love and selflessness,” her attorney said.

Her family released a statement Friday saying this is an “unimaginably difficult moment” and asking for privacy as they navigate the tragedy. “Our attention is on supporting one another,” reads the statement they shared via the Fairfax County Police Department.

A dentist who took pride in her work and cared for her patients

Fairfax was a beloved and accomplished dentist, running her own thriving family dental practice, Dr. Fairfax & Associates Family Dentistry, serving the Fairfax, Virginia community.

She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Duke before obtaining her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Dentistry in 2005, graduating magna cum laude, according to her practice’s website.

Fairfax enjoyed “all fields of dentistry” and focused on “conservative, comprehensive dentistry,” the website says. Throughout her career she received several honors and awards, including the VCU School of Dentistry’s Alumni Association Award for Outstanding Graduate of the Last Decade for her many contributions to the profession.

“As a clinician and alumna, Dr. Fairfax embodied the ideals of our profession—dedication to her patients, commitment to growth, and a deep sense of purpose in her work each day. I know she was a mentor, role model, and friend to many in our school,” a statement from VCU School of Dentistry Interim Dean Jeffrey Johnson said.

“Cerina really loved what she did, like she took pride in her work,” Terron Sims, a friend and longtime patient, told CNN affiliate WTVR. “Her profession was an extension of her love and care for people.”

“Dr. Fairfax considers it an honor and a privilege to serve the community of Fairfax, Virginia. She is committed to serving not only her patients but others as well through participation in community outreach programs,” her practice website states.

“We couldn’t believe it,” Janice Hildreth, a patient who had been in Fairfax’s office just days before her murder on Thursday, told CNN. “She was such a lovely human being, such a warm and gentle person.”

Hildreth began seeing Fairfax after she and her husband moved to the area several years ago. She said Fairfax’s practice was small but had a “very caring” staff. She was so pleased with the doctor’s care; she said she referred several friends to her.

“It was just wonderful vibes in that whole office.”

A hands-on mother who once built a zip line for her two kids

“Above all else,” her divorce attorney Amy Spain said, Cerina was a “devoted mother to her beautiful children, who were the very center of her world.”

Fairfax “embodied the true meaning of motherhood through her unconditional and unwavering devotion to her children, providing a constant source of love, protection, and guidance,” Spain said.

Erin Baylongo, a mother of four young children, who lived next door to the Fairfax family for about five years, told CNN what she saw of Cerina Fairfax painted a picture of a committed mother.

“Just seeing her interactions with her kids, the time spent in the backyard, all the time doing stuff (…) She just made a very welcoming backyard” for her children, Baylongo said.

Fairfax was an “active mom,” Baylongo said, and “total DIY person” when it came to building things and setting up activities for her two children in the backyard. She said she watched Fairfax build an aboveground pool for her children in the backyard, set up a zipline apparatus, and build chicken coops.

Baylongo says she is “shocked” over the murder-suicide and said, “I wish I would have gotten to know her more.”

The judge presiding over Fairfax’s divorce from her husband noted she had been “the primary caregiver for both children for almost the entirety of their lives, and in all respects,” according to the court order.

“Among other things, she is the planner, the scheduler, the caretaker, the cook, the disciplinarian, and the primary nurturer. She has performed all these roles while working part-time as a dentist in a dental practice she owns,” the judge wrote, calling her “a port in a storm for her children.”

“Their remarkable resilience and early success in life is down to what can best be described as Mother’s grit,” the judge added.

Sims shared Fairfax had started to plan college trips for both of her children.

“It is an absolute tragedy that Cerina was taken from her children and family,” Spain said. “May her memory inspire all who knew her to honor her enduring legacy of love and selflessness, which she expressed most poignantly through motherhood.”

A second lady and wife of nearly 20 years

From 2018 to 2022, Cerina Fairfax balanced her work as a dentist and mother while serving as Virginia’s second lady during her husband Justin Fairfax’s tenure as lieutenant governor under Gov. Ralph Northam.

The couple met at Duke University and married in Arlington, Virginia, in 2006 before welcoming their son in 2009 and daughter in 2011.

In 2019, two women accused Justin Fairfax, then lieutenant governor of Virginia, of sexual assault. Justin Fairfax repeatedly denied the allegations and called for investigations into the accusations, saying he was “confident” it would clear his name.

CNN could find no record of Cerina Fairfax speaking publicly at the time about the allegations made against her husband, and she remained in the marriage.

The judge’s order in the couple’s recent divorce proceedings described the use of troublesome language between the two, including Cerina Fairfax admitting to calling her husband an “idiot” and a “deadbeat.” The judge also noted “a flurry of slaps” in 2019 when Cerina allegedly “found out [Justin] was an adulterer,” the court order said.

The two separated on June 1, 2024, while still living in the same house and entered a “post-nuptial agreement” on December 14, 2024, according to the filing.

“There is no expectation or hope of reconciliation between the parties,” Cerina Fairfax’s divorce filing stated.

She alleged Justin “has not complied with the post-nuptial agreement in any form since its execution” and “does not make any financial contributions to support the Wife and their children,” the filing said.

Cerina Fairfax had asked the court to award joint legal custody, with the children primarily residing with her while Justin Fairfax would have a visitation schedule, according to the filing.

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CNN’s Jeff Winter, Eric Levenson and Brian Todd contributed to this reporting.