“This is an unimaginably difficult moment for the family, and our attention is on supporting one another. We respectfully ask for privacy and space as we navigate the days ahead,” the statement read.

The statement was in response to the discovery this week of Cerina Fairfax and her husband, former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, dead in their Annandale home as the result of a murder suicide where Justin Fairfax killed his wife and then turned the gun on himself.

The couple was in the midst of a “messy” divorce.

Fairfax was apparently served paperwork “associated with an upcoming court proceeding,” which may have led to the shooting, Police Chief Kevin Davis said.

In January, Fairfax alleged that his wife assaulted him, an accusation that Davis said was investigated by police and found to be untrue.

The couple were separated while living in the house together, but Justin Fairfax had until the end of April to move out, per a judge’s order.

Cerina Fairfax had testified in court that her husband drank daily, and that his living space was littered with empty wine bottles and piles of dirty laundry. He bought a handgun in 2022 with money intended for horseback riding lessons for their children, court records showed.

According to court documents, Justin Fairfax’s “mental and emotional health” suffered after two setbacks: his unsuccessful 2013 campaign for the Democratic nomination for attorney general and the 2019 sexual assault scandal that ended his political career. After both, he drank heavily and withdrew from his family, but while it took about a month to recover from the first setback, he never bounced back from the second.

The couple’s teenage children, a boy and a girl, were in the house when it happened. Police said neither were physically harmed.

An outpouring of support and sympathy has been left at Dr. Fairfax’s dental office in the days since her murder.

Longtime patients described her as kind, compassionate and deeply caring.

No additional information is being shared by the family at this time.

������Ƶapp’s Will Vitka contributed to this report.

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Shepherd shared her thoughts on Pope Leo, joking about his Chicago roots.

“Why is anybody messing with Pope Leo? He’s from Chicago,” Shepherd said.

“Come on. You don’t get popes from the Chi. They make them special when they come straight from the Chi. That is my heart right there, my Chicago pope. I’m not even Catholic, and I’m just in love. You make that make sense.”

The comedian also weighed in on modern dating, saying social media has become her go-to source for free advice — even if she doesn’t always follow it.

“It’s a new world with dating. I get all my therapy on TikTok, because it’s free,” Shepherd said.

“They tell me that when a man texts or calls me, I’m supposed to wait 24 to 36 hours to answer him back. Well, in the season I’m in, I won’t remember who texted me. I have to get back to you right away.”

Describing herself as “old school,” Shepherd said she’s not a fan of long phone conversations before a first date.

“You cannot take three hours of my time telling me all of your problems what your grandmother did and didn’t do and we haven’t even had a ribeye,” she said. “So, you make that make sense.”

In addition to touring, Shepherd highlighted an upcoming film she executive produced with “Good Morning America” co-anchor Robin Roberts.

The movie, based on the true story of Genelle Guzman, is expected to be released around Sept. 12.

Shepherd also reflected on her career milestones, including receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and her time on “The Jamie Foxx Show” and “The View.”

�����������’s is Saturday night at Lisner Auditorium, with the show scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

More information about her tour dates and projects can be found at .

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Dearay Wilson, 30, pleaded guilty in February to second-degree murder while armed, according to a

Judge Neal E. Kravitz sentenced Wilson to 18 years behind bars, followed by five years of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a gun offender.

The case stems from a June 2021 shooting in Northwest D.C. that left 53-year-old Jeremy Black dead.

Prosecutors noted that Wilson and three others drove to the area of Johnson Avenue and the 1400 block of R Street NW, where they opened fire on a group gathered outside an apartment building. More than 45 rounds were fired onto the busy street.

Black, who was walking with his wife and two friends after going to dinner at a nearby restaurant, was struck once in the torso while crossing Johnson Avenue. He died at the scene. Authorities say he was not involved in the dispute and was an innocent bystander.

After the shooting, Wilson and the others fled in a stolen vehicle.

“This sentencing sends a clear and necessary message: violent crime will not go unanswered,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement. “Our thoughts remain with the victim’s loved ones, and we remain committed to stopping senseless violence in the District.”

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The three-hour allotment was suggested by the airport in a new update on Sunday, a day after the major travel hub urged travelers to bookmark four hours in order to account for serious delays at security checkpoints.

“Checkpoint wait times have improved greatly, but remain longer than normal,” reads a notice. “Travelers departing from Concourses A, B and C are advised to arrive 3 hours before scheduled departure.”

Airport and airline staff are on hand to aid travelers in navigating the process.

Keep up to date on airport conditions at BWI Marshall by following the .

New batch of ICE agents head to BWI Marshall

The latest comes as nationwide airports, including the DC region’s BWI Marshall, Dulles International and Regan National airports, experiences serious delays prompted by Transportation Security Administration staffing shortages.

It also follows an announcement by the Maryland Aviation Administration detailing that additional U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were being deployed starting Saturday afternoon.

“MAA was advised by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) that ICE personnel will be working to assist TSA security checkpoints at BWI Marshall, similar to their roles during recent deployments at airports across the country,” reads a release.

“Primary aviation security functions, including passenger and baggage screening responsibilities, will remain with trained, skilled TSA personnel. The ICE personnel will provide operational support for TSA to speed up the clearance process for passengers.”

“MAA has been informed by TSA that ICE’s primary focus is security operations, not immigration enforcement, during their deployment to BWI Marshall Airport,” the notice adds.

For weeks, TSA agents have worked without pay during the partial government shutdown, with many staffers opting to stop going into work. These same workers previously endured the nation’s longest government shutdown last fall.

President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order to pay TSA employees, a move that came after he’d earlier deployed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to help ease airport checkpoints delays.

“America’s air travel system has reached its breaking point,” Trump said in the memo authorizing the payments, according to the AP. “I have determined that these circumstances constitute an emergency situation compromising the Nation’s security.”

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said TSA workers “should begin seeing paychecks as early as Monday.”

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“Confusing, chaotic, little bit hopeless,” is the way that Denise Kitts, a retiree of the Veterans Affairs Department from Alexandria, currently feels about the country.

“I think it’s really important for voices to be heard and for us to demonstrate and have people understand that government’s not currently working for the people,” Kitts said.

The rallies, dubbed “No Kings,” brought together around the D.C. region including the Frederick Douglass Bridge and the National Mall who believe Trump and his actions represent a direct threat to American democracy.

In previous editions, people either gathered in large cities or in their own communities in small demonstrations calling for “No Thrones. No Crowns. No Kings.”

Saturday’s protests included chanting, singing and handmade signs, like the one held up by Peter Lee.

On one side Lee’s sign said, “Former Republican, unpaid protester,” and the other side it said, “We are here because we love our country.”

“This is not normal politics. Our country is not living up to its ideals and traditions over the last 250 years,” Lee said.

“This is a seminal moment for our country. It’s the American experiment that is at risk here.”

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Police in Fairfax County, Virginia, believe the same naked burglar entered at least four homes in Centreville the weekend of March 5.

Police believe the person is linked to related incidents in the neighborhood, starting in the early morning hours, when the suspect entered a bedroom of a home in the 14800 block of Bodley Square while the victim was getting ready for work. The suspect fled when confronted.

On March 6, around 5:30 a.m., in the 14800 block of Leicester Court, a resident discovered a footprint on a trash can that had been moved against a fence and is believed to have been used to climb into the backyard. Police said there’s evidence of an attempted burglary at the residence.

The suspect is described as a Black male, light or medium complexion, about 5 feet 10 inches tall, with an average build.

See the sketch below.

Fairfax County police are asking if you recognize the suspect or have information about these incidents, or if anyone believes they may have been a victim of a related crime, to call the Sully District Station at 703-814-7000.

Tips can be submitted anonymously through Crime Solvers by phone, at 866-411-TIPS, or 

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D.C. Water spokesperson Sherri Lewis said the water flow was restored after a series of tests were carried out by officials early Saturday.

“This morning, testing confirmed that flow can be safely returned to the pipe,” she said. “This is a huge day for all of our crews who have been working so hard to try and get this work done.”

Back on Jan. 19, the massive 72-inch pipeline, known as the Potomac Interceptor, ruptured.

The leak sent 250 million gallons of untreated sewage into the Potomac River just north of Washington.

Lewis said that to make the emergency repair, the crew had to cut off all of the flow to the Potomac Interceptor downstream.

“So we installed this huge steel bulkhead gate that blocked all of the flow downstream. We got to work on the emergency repair, and today we were able to lift up that gate and let all of the water go back into the Potomac Interceptor,” she said.

Then the workers turned off the pumps so that nothing could go into the C&O Canal, “and we could start the cleanup efforts there,” Lewis said.

She said the cleanup effort was “herculean” and needed a large staff to fix the pipe.

“We’ve had an average of about 53 people just for D.C. Water out here. That doesn’t include our federal partners, who have also been out here working on the environmental rehabilitation and storm water management piece of things,” she said.

Some of the crew have been working in three shifts over the day in eight-hour shifts, or 12-hour shifts, Lewis said.  “This is a 24-hour operation, because we had to keep those pumps running. Just to give you an idea of the magnitude of what was happening out here, to keep all those pumps and everything running, we were using enough fuel to power 11 to 12 American homes for an entire year.”

She said the crew was cleaning out “rags and wipes out of our pumps that were clogging”  them.

“It’s been a lot of hard work, and I think everybody is really excited to get to this point. We still have a lot of work ahead,” she said.

The environmental rehabilitation work is still needed, which has begun on the C&O Canal. She said water is being held at Violet’s Lock, which will be used to flush out the canal into openings the workers were using to work on the bypass.

Lewis said the agency is looking at other areas along the Potomac Interceptor to make sure another rupture doesn’t happen again.

“The rocks and the boulders that were backfilled from the original construction exacerbated the situation that we had here because they blocked the entire pipe,” she said. “That’s not something you would normally see under standard industry backfill practices.

She said the agency is seeing what lessons can be learned from maintaining aging infrastructure. The Interceptor was built in the 1960s and completed in 1964.

������Ƶapp’s Diane Morris and Jimmy Alexander contributed to this report.

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Temperatures vary widely, with 40s across the northern suburbs and readings near 60 in the south before colder and windier conditions take over in the afternoon, according to ������Ƶapp Meteorologist Mike Stinneford.

He said that most of the D.C. area will fall below freezing overnight Sunday into Monday.

The drop in temperature comes with a chance of snow, but the cold may not last for long. The snowy weather isn’t expected to turn into any major accumulation.

“Light snow may develop Monday afternoon as a system passes well to the south, but temperatures should stay warm enough to prevent travel issues,” Stinneford said.

A mix of snow and freezing rain Monday night could lead to icy roads Tuesday morning, before the region warms enough for plain rain in the afternoon.

A mild but unsettled stretch arrives Wednesday through Friday.

• Listen to ������Ƶapp online and on the radio at 103.5 FM or 107.7 FM.
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SUNDAY: Mix of clouds and sun, with isolated morning shower. Mostly sunny, windy and colder later on. Highs between the 40s and 50s.

SUNDAY NIGHT: Partly to mostly cloudy, colder. Lows between the mid 20s to lower 30s.

MONDAY: Mostly cloudy, colder. Chance of light afternoon snow with little or no accumulation. Highs in the mid to upper 30s.

MONDAY NIGHT: Light snow mixing with or changing to freezing rain. Lows in the lower 30s.

TUESDAY: Chance of freezing rain early, changing rapidly to plain rain. Highs in the low to mid 40s.

WEDNESDAY: Warmer, chance of showers. Highs near 60.

Current weather

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According to St Mary’s County police, at approximately 9:04 a.m., 911 received several calls from residents regarding a possible aircraft crash in the area.

First responders were able to locate the aircraft in a wooded area of Dorsey Park at 10:21 a.m, police said.

The Federal Aviation Administration said that it was a Sonex ultralight aircraft that crashed with a pilot on board and no passengers. The pilot was pronounced dead on the scene, according to police.

Police said that the plane crashed for “unknown reasons.”

The FAA said the National Transportation Safety Board will be investigating the cause of the crash.

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Expect road closures and parking restrictions on D.C. streets Tuesday as President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to Congress.

Roads will temporarily close around the U.S. Capitol and traffic will be redirected to accommodate the president’s address, which is expected to begin at 9 p.m.

Road closures

From 12:01 a.m. until the conclusion of the event, the following roads will be closed to the public:

• First Street, between Constitution Avenue NW and Independence Avenue SW
• Pennsylvania Avenue, between 3rd Street NW and First Street NW
• Maryland Avenue, between 3rd Street SW and First Street SW

From 1 p.m. until the conclusion of the event, the following roads will be closed to the public:

• First Street, between Constitution Avenue NE and Independence Avenue SE
• East Capitol Street, between First Street and 2nd Street

From 5:30 p.m. until the conclusion of the event, the following roads will be closed to the public:

• Constitution Avenue, between Louisiana Avenue NW and 2nd Street NE
• Independence Avenue, between Washington Avenue SW and 2nd Street SE
• First Street, between Constitution Avenue NW and Louisiana Avenue NW
• First Street, between the Rayburn House Office Building garage entrance and Independence Avenue SW
• D Street, between First Street NE and 2nd Street NE
• Maryland Avenue, between First Street NE and Constitution Avenue, NE
• New Jersey Avenue, between C Street NW and Constitution Avenue, NW

From 7 p.m. until the conclusion of the event, the following roads will be closed to the public:

• First Street, between Columbus Circle NE and D Street NE
• D Street, between Louisiana Avenue NW and First Street NE
• Delaware Avenue, between Columbus Circle NE and D Street NE
• 2nd Street, between Constitution Avenue NE and Independence Avenue SE
• Constitution Avenue, between 3rd Street NW and Louisiana Avenue NW
• First Street, between C Street NW and Louisiana Avenue NW
• Independence Avenue, between 3rd Street SW and Washington Avenue SW
• Washington Avenue, between Independence Avenue SW and C Street SW
• 2nd Street, between Washington Avenue SW and C Street SW

No parking

Parking won’t be allowed on these streets from 9:30 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. Tuesday:

• Pennsylvania Avenue, between 6th Street and 3rd Street NW
• Constitution Avenue, between 6th Street and 3rd Street NW
• Independence Avenue, between 7th Street and 3rd Street SW
• Maryland Avenue, between Independence Avenue and 3rd Street SW
• 3rd Street, between Constitution Avenue NW and Independence Avenue SW
• 7th Street, between Constitution Avenue NW to Independence Avenue SW

Parking will be restricted on these streets from 3 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. Tuesday:

• 17th Street, from New York Avenue to Constitution Avenue NW
• 15th Street, between New York Avenue and Constitution Avenue NW
• Constitution Avenue, between 15th Street and 6th Street NW
• Independence Avenue, from 14th Street to 7th Street SW

These streets will be posted as emergency no parking from 4 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. Tuesday:

• Jefferson Drive NW, between 3rd Street and 14th Street
• Madison Drive NW, between 3rd Street and 14th Street

Tour bus rerouting

From 12:01 a.m. until 11 p.m., tour buses will be rerouted away from the Capitol Complex for passenger loading and unloading.

Additional road closure information can be found .

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A family of four was found dead from stab wounds from an apparent murder-suicide in their home in Woodbridge, Virginia, early Saturday morning.

According to , officers arrived on scene in the 3400 block of Vale Court after 8 a.m. and found four people dead inside the home.

There was a man in his 40s, a woman in her 70s, a 2-year-old and the presumed suspect — a woman in her 30s, who they believe was the child’s mother.

Everyone in the home was stabbed. They were discovered by an elderly man who lives in the basement. Police believe he’s the child’s grandfather.

“Compare it to the worst possible nightmare you’ve ever had,” said Col. Peter Newsham, Prince William County’s police chief. “We don’t know the exact cause or the motive in this case, but just to see a family destroyed like this is horrific.”

Sonya Gonzalez has lived near the townhouse where the bodies were found for eight years and was shocked to hear the news of the murder-suicide.

“This is a good neighborhood. Never seen fights or any domestic fights or anything around here,” she told ������Ƶapp.

The investigation is ongoing as Newsham said that the elderly man inside the house is cooperating.

������Ƶapp’s Jimmy Alexander contributed to this story.

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Unlike two other civil rights-related constitutional amendments that passed with bipartisan support over the past year, Virginia’s reproductive rights measure has faced at every stage, with every Republican in the legislature opposing it.

In defending her amendment for the final time, Sen. Jennifer Boysko, D-Fairfax, emphasized that advancing the proposal would ultimately leave the decision to voters across the state.

Ranging from fertility treatments to contraception access to the ability to obtain an abortion, “this amendment protects families’ entire scope of reproductive needs,” she said.

Boysko and several other Democratic lawmakers have described how women in states with abortion bans have amid pregnancy complications. Those states have also seen an of OB-GYN physicians amid uncertainty of treating patients who need abortions or miscarriage management.

Boysko grew tearful as she recounted and advocacy shared by constituents and people around the state.

Relatedly, Sen. Emily Jordan, R-Isle of Wight, struck a somber tone as she noted that “this is a difficult topic for a lot of people.”

On the opposite side of the chamber’s aisle — and in opposition to the amendment — Jordan unsuccessfully attempted to modify the proposal to explicitly spell out care for babies when born.

A sticking point for some Republicans has been concern that the amendment could be interpreted to allow abortion up to the “,”  though infanticide remains illegal under both and.

Sen. Tara Durant, R-Stafford, also attempted for the second legislative session in a row, to reiterate existing . Democrats and legal experts said it is unnecessary. Under Virginia , minors are required to have parental or guardian consent for an abortion unless they petition a judge for authorization.

On Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, accused Republicans of employing delay tactics by pressing for their amendments to the amendment.

“It is a delay tactic,” Sen. Mark Obenshain, R-Rockbridge, said on Friday, as he urged lawmakers to re-draft the amendment. Doing so, however, would restart the two-year process.

A sense of urgency

While not entirely a partisan issue at the national level, the issue has increasingly fallen along party lines in states. That dynamic, Virginia Wesleyan University professor Leslie Caughell said, helps explain why Democrats are moving quickly while they hold legislative majorities.

Though placing language in the Constitution is difficult, it is also harder to undo. With imposing deep restrictions or near-total bans, bolstering Virginia’s protections has become a priority for Democrats. Providers and abortion funds in Virginia have also seen in out-of-state patients seeking care.

“I think everything that happened in North Carolina made activists on this really uncomfortable,” Caughell said.

In 2023, a member of the neighboring state’s legislature switched from Democrat to Republican, giving the GOP a and paving the way for enactment of North Carolina’s current 12-week abortion limit.

In Virginia, Republicans have also put forward a range of abortion restrictions, from to a that lacked exceptions for fetal anomalies — which are often not detected until .

On other reproductive health issues, a right-to-contraception bill has twice been by former Gov. Glenn Youngkin — a point Boysko reiterated as the amendment advanced last week.

‘Yes’ and “No’ campaigns on the horizon

Reproductive rights groups in Virginia, along with physicians and volunteers, have coordinated as part the national effort. Last year, a $5 million investment supported targeted initiatives ranging from canvassing to digital advertising in states such as Virginia, where Abigail Spanberger was elected governor.

Spanberger campaigned in part on , though governors do not formally factor into its success or failure.

“I look forward to spending ample time in advance of the 2026 elections campaigning to make sure that people understand the importance of this constitutional amendment,” she told The Mercury last summer.

On the other side, SBA Pro-Life America Virginia-based anti-abortion groups last year through door-knocking efforts in key House of Delegates districts that were up for election.

Democrats ultimately by flipping additional seats.

The abortion-opposing group “doesn’t have anything to share on the Virginia front at this time,” Communications Director Kelsey Pritchard said in an email, but the organization is monitoring Virginia among other states as it prepares to engage voters.

Virginians for Reproductive Freedom — which includes organizations like Repro Rising and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia — will likely ramp up public engagement events and advertising as the November elections approach.

Caughell said she is watching closely to see how Virginia’s constitutional amendment campaigns intersect with this year’s congressional midterm elections.

— which include redistricting, reproductive rights, same-sex marriage rights and voting rights — arrive at a moment when Democrats may have an advantage, she noted.

Midterm elections are often a referendum on the party that controls the White House, Caughell said.

With Republican President Donald Trump in the White House, GOP majorities in Congress, and , the amendments championed by Democrats could also help drive down-ballot votes.

She also noted that abortion, as a distinct health care need, has become a more salient argument in recent years, alongside economic considerations and support for personal choice.

“We’ve expanded the parameters of our understanding of who this issue directly affects,” Caughell said.

Speaking with reporters outside the Senate chamber Friday, Sen. Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, emphasized that the work is not finished.

“It’s our responsibility to go out there and tell the voters this is what this means and help everybody understand what they’re voting for,” she said.

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Matthew Demlein, a spokesman for the Virginia State Police, told ������Ƶapp that the incident started at about 3 p.m. Friday, when Fairfax County Police spotted a 2011 Dodge Nitro tied to a possible domestic kidnapping case out of Prince William County.

Troopers moved in for a traffic stop on the northbound lanes of Interstate 95, but the driver — later identified as Woodbridge resident Carlos Gomez Lozano — refused to pull over, according to Demlein. This led police onto eastbound Interstate 495 before the chase was called off at the Maryland state line.

About 90 minutes later, Prince William County Police saw the same car in Dale City and again tried to stop the vehicle to no avail. A second pursuit of the vehicle saw the chase head back onto I‑95, Demlein said.

While a Virginia State Police officer attempted a stopping maneuver near the Prince William County Parkway, Gomez Lozano evaded capture by driving southbound on the northbound I-95 lanes. However, the car was brought to a halt after he crashed into a responding trooper’s cruiser and two other civilian vehicles.

Gomez Lozano subsequently ran from the scene but was quickly arrested by Prince William County Police.

The trooper that was hit suffered minor injuries and did not require hospitalization, Demlein said.

Prince William County Police are continuing to investigate the crash and the reported abduction.

Below is a map of the area where the crash happened:

������Ƶapp’s Diane Morris contributed to this report.

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Around 3:45 p.m., state police said, a trooper attempted to stop the driver of a Honda Accord suspected of reckless driving at the intersection of S. Van Dorn and Eisenhower streets.

The driver of the vehicle refused to stop, which led to a pursuit, police said. The driver of the Honda headed toward the Van Dorn Street exit during the incident.

The pursuit ended abruptly in the area of the exit when the trooper ran off the road, struck a tree and rolled over once in an attempt to avoid hitting a third, uninvolved vehicle, police said.

The trooper suffered minor injuries and was taken to the hospital.

Police are still investigating the incident.

A map of the area where the crash happened is below:

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“We pay very close attention to crime and we’ve had a lot of success,” said Newsham. “If you look at our homicide rate, you have 100% closure on our cases this year. It’ll be five years since I’ve been here, where we’ve only had one homicide that has remained open.”

Hiring affects crime rate

While the crime numbers are coming down, having officers in the community is a huge crime prevention tool. Newsham notes that there has been a slight decrease in the number of applicants looking to become police officers.

“There’s a shrinking pool of folks that are available to work in law enforcement,” said Newsham. “We are competing with federal agencies are offering these pretty significant signing bonuses, and they’re hiring lots of law enforcement on the federal side, so I think that’s impacting our pool of applicants.”

“Prince William County is in pretty good shape with vacancies less than 12%, but with over 500,000 residents, you’ve got make sure you have enough police officers to provide an adequate police service,” said Newsham.

Community shapes the plan

Every two years, the Prince William County Police Department is required to do a satisfaction survey with the community to maintain its national accreditation.

“It’s a random survey, and it touches all of the different diverse groups that we have in the county and our satisfaction rating, our department satisfaction rate about 96% which is something we’re very, very proud of,” said Newsham. “People are not afraid to talk to us at this department.”

“People who do this work are really, really phenomenal people. They operate under some very, very difficult circumstances, and they go out there every single day and they’re out there helping people,” said Newsham.

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