Jeff Cohen was able to keep a “complete sense of composure” during the 11-hour standoff he found himself in while attending services at his North Texas synagogue on Jan. 15. Taken hostage with three others, including a rabbi, Cohen knew he had to approach the situation like a chess game if they were all going to escape safely.
Pulling from the active-threat training he received at his synagogue, Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, only half a year before, Cohen got the other hostages to slowly move toward the exit, setting them up for their eventual escape to safety.
