(UPDATE, MARCH 27) Billing Police Chief Rich St. John said at a news conference on Friday morning that officers were dispatched to a reported vehicle theft, and when they arrived, the suspect ran away.
WATCH THE NEWS CONFERENCE:
St. John said the suspect was armed with a .45-caliber handgun and a large amount of ammunition.
The man was believed to have been attempting to break into vehicles when a neighbor reported him. The man also had an outstanding warrant for contempt, St. John said.
Officers responded to the call about 20 minutes later, at which point the man ran away.
St. John said the man reached for a weapon, prompting Officer Quin Johnson to fire a single shot that struck the man in the head, St. John said.
WITNESSES REACT - WATCH:
A beanbag round was also fired during the incident.
The man remains hospitalized in stable condition, according to St. John. His name has not been released.
An officer-in-training and another backup officer were also on scene during the shooting. All three officers involved have been placed on administrative leave, which is standard procedure.
An independent review will be conducted before the case is forwarded to the Yellowstone County Attorney’s Office for further evaluation.
(1st REPORT, MARCH 26) An investigation is underway after a person was reportedly shot by a police officer in Billings on Thursday, March 26, 2026. It happened along the 1200 block of North 26th Street at about 1:25 p.m.
Brooke Bigler and her son were outisde when she heard a gunshot: “Me and my son were coming back from the gym and we were just walking up the street and I noticed that there was a lot of cops and that's happened like a few times this year. So I was like, okay. But then I heard someone shout and I heard a gunshot. So we just ran inside and then there was like seriously like 30 cops and I was like, wow, it's a lot.”
Bob Bratton, who has lived in the area for nearly 50 years, said he was alerted by a neighbor and came outside to find the street filled with emergency responders.
“I just saw a person, looked like a male, laying on the on the street out in the middle of the street in front of my house,” said Bratton. “I just couldn't imagine what had happened."
The Billings Police Department said that a male suspect was taken to a Billings hospital with "unknown severity of injuries."
No officers were injured during the incident.
No other details have been released at this point, including the name of the person who was injured, his current medical condition, or what led to the shooting.
The agency said there is no threat to the public, and that more information will be released on Friday.
