Obama phones Ga. woman credited with stopping gunman
SYRACUSE, N.Y. President Barack Obama has phoned a Georgia woman credited with helping prevent a school shooting to thank her for her actions.
Antoinette Tuff talked 20-year-old Michael Brandon Hill into surrendering after he prompted a lockdown at McNair Discovery Learning Academy in Decatur, Ga. Tuesday.
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The White House says Obama spoke with Tuff on Thursday while in New York, where he is on an education-focused bus trip.
The White House says the president praised Tuff for the courage she displayed earlier this week while talking to a gunman who entered the school where she works.
Police say Tuff, a school bookkeeper, was heroic in how she responded after being taken hostage by the gunman. They credit her calm demeanor and kind approach with persuading the man to surrender and ending the ordeal without any injuries.
Tuff appeared on CNN Thursday night and told Anderson Cooper that the president called her while she was sitting in the network's makeup room preparing for the interview.
During the news program, Tuff also met DeKalb County emergency dispatcher Kendra McCray, who stayed on the phone with her as she reassured Hill that surrendering peacefully was the right thing to do.