Girl, 7, Shot By Boy, 8, at Day Care in Montgomery

"Our first concern was for her and her family," Favret said. "She's kind of a favorite around here -- very gregarious, always has a crowd around her."

Miles away, in a McLean office, parent Jackie Tazwell, 29, an administrative assistant, got a frantic call from her sister, who had recognized the name of the day-care center's street from news reports. Tazwell's heart pounded as she called the center, where she had left her 4-year-old son at 6:30 a.m. He was not hurt, she was told during a brief conversation with a day-care worker. Still, she yearned to hold her son.

"I dropped everything and ran straight from work to find out what was going on," Tazwell said.

At McAuliffe, administrators went to Code Blue -- a state of heightened awareness used in emergency situations. School officials told parents concerned about the shooting that their children would be safe in school.

"Not a lot of kids knew about this incident," said Favret, the principal. "It was scary for parents to hear that a kid had a gun inside a backpack. The reality is, it's scary that we're in a large community where people have guns and kids have access to them."

When asked by police where he got the gun, the 8-year-old boy said "he brought the handgun from home and that it was his father's," according to a police document. The boy also "stated that there were numerous additional firearms in that residence which he had access to," the document said.

Hall's criminal history dates to at least 1968 in Baltimore, according to a list of 17 offenses outlined in the police document prepared yesterday. The list says he has been charged with assault with the intent to commit murder, battery, intimidating a witness, assault with the intent to maim and a handgun violation, among other offenses. It did not say how many charges had led to convictions.

Hall was being held on $750,000 bond.

Parents of McAuliffe students expressed shock and anger yesterday.

"It's very scary," said Rana Kuri, 41, whose 10-year-old son is a fifth-grader. "This is an elementary school. Are they going to put in a metal detector?" She paused, seemingly outraged by the thought. "They might as well consider it."

Jason Musser, 25, whose 7-year-old daughter attends McAuliffe, said he was concerned by what he perceived to be a recent surge in crime in Germantown.

"This is a shocker, especially happening just across the street" from the school, he said. "I was a kid here. I would never feel unsafe walking alone at night. I don't do that anymore."

The center is one of two operated by For Kids We Care. The second is at the Canterbury apartments in the 19900 block of Sweetgum Circle in Germantown. Property managers at both locations asked reporters to leave the premises yesterday. A woman who answered the phone at the Canterbury center declined to comment.

Tazwell said she thought the day-care staff handled the situation well. She said she plans to continue taking her son to the center. Her son seems unfazed by what he witnessed, she said.

"He hasn't talked about it unless he's been asked," she said.

The shooting came days after 4-year old Fahad Islam was hit in the head Friday night by what appeared to be a stray bullet while playing in his Columbia home. He was taken to the hospital in serious condition but is expected to be released in two to three weeks, according to Renu Shrestha, a family friend.

Howard County police said they are trying to determine who was responsible for the shooting.

Staff writers Dan Morse and Amit R. Paley contributed to this report.