<p>A jealous ex-husband who shot three former in-laws to death with a rifle before strangling his infant daughter and kidnapping three little girls clung to life in a hospital Friday after shooting himself in the face during a police chase, officials said.</p><p>The suspect, 31-year-old Jerry William Jones, shot himself after fleeing with the girls Thursday in a stolen sport utility vehicle. He was captured just over the Georgia state line in East Ridge, Tenn., Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead said.</p><p>The girls were found unharmed following the chase that began on Interstate 75 about 50 miles north of where the killings occurred 24 hours earlier, Bankhead said.</p><p>Jones remained in critical condition Friday and was being treated in a Chattanooga hospital, said hospital spokeswoman Jan Powell.</p><p>He could remain hospitalized for several weeks as he recovers from the gunshot that entered his chin and exited his upper jaw, said East Ridge, Tenn., police Lt. Tim Mullinax. I dont think his injuries are life-threatening but I think they are fairly severe, he said.</p><p>The three girls were in good condition and were released from the hospital Thursday evening, according to the hospitals Web site.</p><p>Two of the children _ Brandy Jones, 4, and Tammy Jones, 3 _ were from Jones and his former common-law wife, Melissa Peeler. The third was Peelers daughter from a previous relationship, Brittany Phelps, 10.</p><p>Jones former in-laws were found dead in two homes down the street from each other in the rural north Georgia town of Ranger, 55 miles north of Atlanta.</p><p>The victims were Peelers parents, Tom and Nola Blaylock, who were found shot to death in one home. In the other house, authorities found Peelers sister, Georgia Bradley, 32, shot to death, while Jones 10-month-old daughter with Peeler, Harley, was apparently strangled.</p><p>Relatives of the victims were relieved by news of Jones capture.</p><p>I cried all night, Kathy ODonnell, of Ellijay, Ga., daughter of the Blaylocks and Peelers sister, told The Associated Press. I dont think its sunk in yet.</p><p>The three children are with child welfare officials, but family members are hoping the children will be returned to them. ODonnell said she was glad to know her nieces were unharmed.</p><p>They are beautiful little girls, ODonnell said. Brittany, the oldest one, is very smart. Im sure she did whatever she could to take care of her sisters. She always does.</p><p>She said she wants Jones to survive the gunshot.</p><p>I want to see him in the courtroom, she said. I want him to have to live with this everyday. I would want to know why he did this and what my mother did so bad that he had to put her through the hell he did. And my 10-month-old niece. Why would he do that to her?</p><p>Terry Baker, 16, Georgia Bradleys son, was staying at a friends house when the killings occurred. Friday morning he was with the ODonnells, grieving the loss of his mother, grandparents and baby cousin.</p><p>I want him to sit and rot in jail, Baker said of Jones.</p><p>He said he wants to ask Jones, why he killed my mama and my grandparents. They wouldnt hurt nobody.</p><p>Authorities said the motive appeared to be jealousy. Peeler was out of town visiting her new boyfriend when the crimes occurred. They said Jones, who had been living in Rome, Ga., 31 miles west of Ranger, has a long criminal history, including convictions for burglary and auto theft.</p><p>Jones called Peeler, his estranged common-law wife, late Wednesday and told her of the killings, adding that he would start killing the kids one by one if she alerted authorities, according to relatives.</p><p>Peeler had been in Oregon spending the Christmas holiday with her boyfriend. She had left the children with her parents and sisters. She notified police after getting the phone call.</p><p>Peeler returned to Georgia Friday aboard an FBI plane, Bankhead said. She was taken to the Gordon County Sheriffs Department.</p><p>According to the GBI, Peeler and Jones were never legally married but had a common-law marriage.</p><p>Bankhead said the crime scenes indicated that the killer was methodical: This wasnt quick. He clearly took his time, he said.</p><p>Hours after the Levis Call _ Georgias version of Amber Alert _ on the abducted children, a driver spotted a vehicle matching the description of the SUV Jones was driving and called 911, said Tera Wilson of the Gordon County Sheriffs Office. The car was heading north on Interstate 75 toward Tennessee.</p><p>Deputies found the car and saw the children inside, but Jones refused to pull over, GBI director Vernon Keenan said. The Georgia State Patrol and deputies from adjacent Coosa County joined in following the vehicle until it exited in the Chattanooga area and drove for about a mile-and-a-half.</p><p>Keenan said a trooper bumped the rear end, forcing it to spin and crash into a telephone pole. The 10-year-old and 4-year-old got out and officers saw Jones slump in the front seat. Officers pulled the 3-year-old, who was covered in Jones blood, from the back seat.</p><p>Bankhead said investigators would compare the weapon found with Jones to determine if it was used in Wednesdays shootings.</p><p>Lt. Mullinax said he didnt expect Jones would face charges in Tennessee. Pending Gordon County, Ga., officials delivering the paperwork to Tennessee, right now we are just kind of baby-sitting him, he said.</p><p>He has got to be medically released, Mullinax said. I dont see him going back to Georgia for a while.</p><p>Jones mother and stepfather were killed in the 1996 ValuJet crash in the Florida Everglades and Jones got a substantial settlement, family members said.</p><p>___</p><p>Associated Press Writer Bill Poovey in Chattanooga, Tenn., contributed to this story.</p>
