Richard Anthony Nichols knocked on the door of the house on Roundtree Drive in Dale City early Monday, a home that doubles as a day-care center. He was looking for Tonitha Marie White.

White’s 12-year-old daughter answered the door and let him in before returning to the basement, where she was helping watch seven children before they were to head off to school.

Within minutes, the daughter heard gunfire upstairs. She gathered the children in a bathroom and called Prince William County police, who found White and Nichols fatally shot at about 7 a.m.

Police said Monday that it appears Nichols, 49, came to the house to kill White, 39, and then turned the gun on himself. Although the nature of their relationship was unclear, Nichols and White had been neighbors on another street in the same subdivision until about a year ago, when White separated from her husband and moved.

Officer Erika Hernandez, a police spokeswoman, said that the two were acquaintances and that the shooting was a “domestic” situation. Police found one gun at the scene but did not describe the wounds or say how many shots were fired. They say they consider the incident a murder-suicide.

The children in the basement were uninjured and did not witness the shooting. They were regularly at the house for care before and after school, and they were taken to a police station in Woodbridge, where their parents picked them up.

For parents who left their children with White, the incident was a terrifying jolt. Natalie Williams received a call from police at 8:18 a.m. telling her that there had been “an incident” at the day care but that they could not provide details.

“I was scared to death and had a million things going through my head,” Williams said. She said her 10-year-old son heard the gunshots but has not said much about the incident.

Williams began using White’s child-care services five years ago after moving in next door to White on Rockcliff Lane. Williams continued with White after she relocated the day care to Roundtree Drive because she trusted White with her son.

“Tonitha was a wonderful and caring person,” Williams said. “I’m just in shock, still trying to process everything.”

Williams praised White’s daughter and her response to the situation: “I’m so glad she kept her wits. She was brave, and I don’t know what I would have done.”

Residents on Rockcliff said White used to live there with her husband, George. Neighbors said they did not know Nichols and never heard of a dispute between Nichols and the Whites. They said the Whites have two children — the daughter who went to the door and a son who is about 9. George White could not be reached for comment.

“I’m shocked,” said Tom Hargest, who lives across the street from White’s former residence on Rockcliff. “Tonitha was a great gal.”

Johnny Acre, 62, lives across the street from the day-care center, which is in White’s gray two-story house. He said he has lived in the neighborhood for 25 years.

“This is a safe place,” said Acre, who was home Monday morning but did not hear gunshots. Other residents also described the neighborhood as a quiet place where many people keep to themselves.

Police said Monday that they are investigating a motive in the shootings and obtaining search warrants for Nichols’s home and vehicle.

SOURCE:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/01/AR2010030103440.html