3 adults, 3 children die in apparent murder-suicide

Santa Clara police are investigating an apparent murder-suicide in a well-to-do neighborhood that left six people dead, including three children.

The killings took place Sunday night in Rivermark, a community northwest of Santa Clara. The gunman apparently roamed through the three-story town house, shooting people in various locations before taking his life on the top floor, according to Capt. Mike Sellers.

A woman in her mid-30s escaped and was found bleeding on the sidewalk. She was in critical condition at a local hospital Monday, Sellers said.

When authorities entered the town house they found the bodies of a girl estimated to be 4 years old, a boy estimated to be 10, a man in his 30s and a woman in her early 20s, all dead of gunshot wounds.

The shooter, a man in his mid-40s, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Sellers said. Two handguns were found in the residence, according to police.

A toddler was alive when paramedics arrived but died overnight at a local hospital, Sellers said.

“We don’t know a motive yet and we don’t know specifically the relationship between all the people,” he said.

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julie.cart@latimes.com