{"id":2592177,"date":"2026-04-17T18:47:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T22:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-called-out-former-lt-governors-very-concerning-behavior-days-before-he-killed-his-wife\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T18:51:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T22:51:08","slug":"judge-called-out-former-lt-governors-very-concerning-behavior-days-before-he-killed-his-wife","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/judge-called-out-former-lt-governors-very-concerning-behavior-days-before-he-killed-his-wife\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge Called Out Former Lt. Governor&#8217;s &#8216;Very Concerning&#8217; Behavior Days Before He Killed His Wife"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjudge-called-out-former-lt-governors-very-concerning-behavior-days-before-he-killed-his-wife%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2592177&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and his wife Cerina were found dead in an apparent murder\u2011suicide, shortly after a Fairfax County judge raised concerns about Fairfax\u2019s mental state. The judge noted Fairfax\u2019s isolation, drinking, and reduced participation in family life, describing signs of fatalism and hopelessness, and pointed out there was no evidence he sought professional help. The couple\u2019s divorce proceedings were nearing key deadlines, <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >wiht fairfax granted joint legal custody<\/a> and Cerina receiving primary physical custody; a hearing was set for April 21, and there was a looming move\u2011out deadline of April 30. Court records also showed Fairfax had purchased a handgun in 2022, which he had during a period characterized as an adverse psychological event. In 2019, Fairfax faced sexual assault allegations from two women-Vanessa Tyson and Meredith Watson-that derailed his political career, though he was never criminally charged. Police indicated Fairfax may have been served with upcoming court paperwork, a factor that could have influenced the tragedy.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>A local judge expressed concern for former Virginia Democratic Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax regarding his state of mind just days before he killed his wife and himself in an apparent murder-suicide.<\/p>\n<p>Police <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/breaking-former-lt-governor-virginia-wife-found-dead\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">discovered<\/a> Justin, 47, and his wife, Cerina, 49, both dead, on Thursday, with a preliminary investigation finding that Justin shot his wife before turning the gun on himself.<\/p>\n<p>The former elected official allegedly killed his estranged wife just days before an April 21 hearing for their divorce case, and just two weeks before an April 30 deadline for him to move out of the house, WTOP-TV <a href=\"https:\/\/wtop.com\/fairfax-county\/2026\/04\/divorce-judge-was-concerned-about-justin-fairfaxs-recent-mental-health-2022-gun-incident-court-documents-show\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Timothy J. McEvoy, who oversaw the divorce case, noted Justin&rsquo;s recent mental decline, writing that his &ldquo;isolation, drinking, and lack of participation in family life are manifestations of what seems to be a sense of fatalism and hopelessness.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In addition, McEvoy wrote that there was no evidence of Justin seeking professional help for his issues, &ldquo;and this is very concerning to the Court.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>He went on to say that emotions and tensions within the home were &ldquo;extremely high for an extended period of time,&rdquo; adding that their living situation was making things harder.<\/p>\n<p>McEvoy did not, however, order any psychological counseling. He also granted Justin joint legal custody of his children, but gave primary physical custody to his wife.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/doj-investigating-spacexs-hiring-practices-after-non-u-s-citizen-alleges-discrimination\/\" title=\"DOJ Investigating SpaceX\u2019s Hiring Practices After Non-U.S. Citizen Alleges Discrimination\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/boeing-agrees-to-2-5b-settlement-over-737-max-crashes\/\" title=\"Boeing agrees to .5B settlement over 737 MAX crashes\">court documents<\/a> revealed<\/a> that Justin purchased a handgun back in 2022, and had it with him during &ldquo;some kind of adverse psychological event&rdquo; that year.<\/p>\n<p>The 2022 events were outlined in a March 30 Fairfax County Circuit Court order related to the custody of their two teenagers.<\/p>\n<p>Court documents said that Justin bought a handgun with funds that were supposed to be used for his children&rsquo;s riding lessons.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, he left home with the firearm and was eventually found by relatives &ldquo;after frantic searching.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>His family was &ldquo;unable to calm him down over the course of several hours,&rdquo; and Justin&rsquo;s brother was reportedly forced to call in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-covid-30-americans-pack-on-the-pounds-during-covid-19-new-report-says\/\" title=\"The COVID 30: Americans Pack On The Pounds During COVID-19, New Report Says\">mental health professional<\/a> to assist.<\/p>\n<p>Justin served as lieutenant governor of Virginia from 2018 to 2022. Back in 2019, two women <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/women-accusing-va-lt-gov-sex-assault-denied-bipartisan-hearing-democrats-report\/?ff_source=web&amp;ff_medium=deepsix&amp;ff_campaign=can&amp;ff_content=2018-12-23\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">accused him<\/a> of sexually assaulting them.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Vanessa Tyson and Meredith Watson leveled their accusations against Fairfax in February. Tyson says Fairfax forced her to perform oral sex in 2004,&rdquo;&nbsp;Fox News&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/us\/gop-dems-wont-hold-bipartisan-hearing-for-fairfax-accusers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">reported<\/a>. &ldquo;Watson says Fairfax raped her in 2000 when both were students at Duke University.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He was never criminally charged, but the allegations ended his political career.<\/p>\n<p>Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis told reporters on Thursday that Justin was apparently served legal paperwork &ldquo;associated with an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/hunter-biden-to-plead-not-guilty-to-federal-gun-charges-report\/\" title=\"Hunter Biden reportedly plans to enter a not guilty plea for federal gun charges.\">upcoming court proceeding<\/a>,&rdquo; which could have prompted the shooting.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A local judge expressed concern about former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax\u2019s mental state just days before he killed his wife and then himself in what appeared to be a murder\u2011suicide. Police found Fairfax, 47, and his wife Cerina, 49, dead; investigators say he shot her and then turned the gun on himself. The couple had been amid a divorce, with a hearing set for April 21 and a deadline of April 30 for Fairfax to move out. Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Timothy J. McEvoy, who oversaw the case, noted Fairfax\u2019s recent decline-his isolation, drinking, and withdrawal from family life-and said these signs suggested fatalism and hopelessness. He also pointed out there was no indication Fairfax sought professional help, which the court found very troubling.<\/p>\n<p>McEvoy described the home situation as extremely tense and said the living arrangements were making things harder. He did not order psychological counseling. The judge did grant joint legal custody of the children but gave primary physical custody to Cerina. Court records indicate Fairfax bought a handgun in 2022 and had it during what was described as an adverse psychological episode that year; relatives reportedly found him after a frantic search, and a family member had to call in a mental health professional to assist. Fairfax served as Virginia\u2019s lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022. In 2019, two women accused him of sexual assault-Vanessa Tyson alleged he forced her to perform oral sex in 2004, and Meredith Watson said he raped her in 2000 while they were at Duke University. He was never charged, but the allegations effectively ended his political career. Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said he was served legal paperwork related to an upcoming court proceeding, which could have been a trigger for the shooting<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2592178,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-04-17T155651.093.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[50403,77631,4151,4349,5894],"class_list":["post-2592177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-crime-2","tag-domestic-violence-2","tag-judiciary","tag-murder","tag-politics"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Ben-Working-Feature-Image-2026-04-17T155651.093.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2592177"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2592181,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2592177\/revisions\/2592181"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2592178"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2592177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2592177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2592177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}