The children were sleeping at the time.

Cortney Chones Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office Credit: Fulton County Sheriff's Office

Gene Smith, the woman’s father, said Chones only fathered the 3-year-old. He did not believe Chones would harm the kids, but after another recent SWAT standoff in metro Atlanta ended with the deaths of a pregnant mother and her teenage son, he was afraid for their lives.

Henry County investigators say a man shot his girlfriend and two police officers before killing her son and then himself during a standoff that stretched from midmorning Thursday to the pre-dawn hours Friday.

Sandra White was fatally shot before police arrived, and officers found the bodies of 16-year-old Arkeyvion White and the gunman, Anthony Bailey, when they forced their way into the Stockbridge home.

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ALSO: 'Shots fired': Body camera footage shows start of deadly Henry County standoff

The officers survived their injuries. Smith said the tragic Henry County incident ran through his mind while he waited for news of his grandchildren.

RELATED: Henry County officers released from hospital after fatal standoff

“I thought about that,” Smith said. “I hoped that it wouldn’t come to that, and it didn’t.”

He said he believed Chones was waiting to release the children until it was time for school. They emerged from the home wearing their school uniforms and ready to start the day. It did not appear they were traumatized, Smith said.

“They are with their mama now,” he said with a sigh of relief. “I’m good. I’m happy now.”

WATCH: Grandfather talks about release of children hostages from barricaded home in SW #Atlanta - https://t.co/18Fu3WbXYR pic.twitter.com/BWxRtlFbCm — John Spink (@johnjspink) April 8, 2019

Daugherty said hostage negotiators and SWAT officers were also “extremely relieved.” No shots were fired during the more than five-hour ordeal.

“This is five kids who were not involved in this incident,” he said. “It’s a dispute between a mother and father. The children played no part in that.”

In order to resolve the situation peacefully, negotiators spoke to the man by loudspeaker, but Daugherty did not know if he refused to come out or if he was simply uncommunicative.

We just heard what sounded like police communicating with someone on a loud speaker. This makes the second domestic-related standoff involving children I’ve covered in the past week. Praying for a safe, peaceful resolution. pic.twitter.com/ftT6jtROFV — Christian Jennings (@CJenningsWSB) April 8, 2019

“Our SWAT team and our hostage negotiators prepare for these types of situations,” he said. “... Things were able to be solved without incident.”

The suspect in the Graymont Drive incident is in custody. Standoff is over. — Atlanta Police Dept (@Atlanta_Police) April 8, 2019

Chones was arrested on misdemeanor charges of simple battery, reckless conduct and obstruction, according to jail records. He was being held in the Fulton County Jail on Monday afternoon, and his bond had not been determined.