Billings police fatally shoot armed man who pointed gun at officers

A man was shot and killed by Billings police after pointing a handgun at officers at a South Side apartment complex. The suspect, Michael Carr, 61, had an extensive violent history from Florida.

Man shot dead by Billings officers after pointing gun at them

Billings police fatally shot a 61-year-old man on Monday afternoon after he pointed a handgun at officers at a South Side apartment complex, montanafreepress.org reports. Interim Police Chief Shawn Mayo confirmed the details at a press conference on Tuesday.

Dispatchers sent officers at 4:12 p.m. to the area of Ninth Avenue South and South 31st Street to serve a temporary restraining order on Michael Carr, who also went by the name David Fuller, Mayo said. Thirteen minutes later, at 4:25 p.m., the man seeking the restraining order called back to report that Carr had pulled a gun on him and his son and was carrying "several knives on his hip," according to Mayo and a Billings Police Department press release.

Officers located Carr at 4:29 p.m. He fled on foot toward an apartment complex at 801 S. 28th St., passing through a courtyard where children were present, Mayo said. Officers ordered him to stop; he did not comply, moved into a carport, and then re-emerged with a gun pointed at them.

Officer Nathan Finn, 31, fired four shots, striking Carr. Finn immediately began CPR. Emergency medical staff pronounced Carr dead at the scene. Officers recovered a 9mm handgun they say Carr had been holding. Finn has been with the department for one year and nine months.

Carr had been living in Billings for at least two years. Mayo described his contact with local police during that period as "very limited," but said Carr carried an "extensive violent history" from Florida, including charges related to burglary, weapons and sex crimes. Mayo said he had no additional information about the relationship between Carr and the man who sought the restraining order.

The Montana Division of Criminal Investigation will review the shooting, in line with standard procedure.

"It should be noted that the officers followed state law and department policy," Mayo said. "The decision to use force was mandated by the suspect."

Mayo confirmed this was the second officer-involved shooting in Billings in 2026, following one additional incident in 2025.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)