Policing In Billings, From The 1980s To Today

After serving the Billings community for nearly 46 years, Chief of Police Rich St. John is retiring at the end of September. Mark and Paul have been long-time supporters of St. John — and all of our men and women who wear the BPD uniform — and were grateful to get 30 minutes with the Chief on their show this morning (9/28).

You can listen to the interview in its entirety at the bottom of this article. If you're more of a reader, here are some highlights of the conversation, edited for clarity from the transcript.

Tell us about how you started your career in law enforcement

While attending Rocky Mountain College (studying History and Political Science), St. John said he was fortunate to have an internship with the BPD.

Did my obligatory bartending that you do when you get out of college. I was at the Cattle Company for those who remember that. I wasn't a mixologist specialist. I stayed on the Mine Shaft side which was beer and peanuts. But yeah, I got hired back then.

How much has the police force grown in the last 40+ years?

St. John's first position was as a patrol officer on the night shift. He noted the department was short-staffed, even back then, with around 80 officers in rotation.

Reflecting on how much the city has grown since the early 80s (Shiloh Road was just a field), the department has grown to keep up.

We've seen it [the city] exponentially double in my time, both in size and department-wise, to [now] work with one hundred seventy-seven sworn officers. Top to bottom to 250, including our civilian staff.

Being a Billings patrolman in the 80s was certainly different than now.

We didn't have many portable radios. You were lucky to grab one. They did have the old call box. There was a phone that you could call in. But if you remember back in the day, because you guys were on the air as well, Montana Avenue, Minnesota Avenue, was a hopping place. You had the prostitutes, had the theaters that were there, all of the bars, the Arcade.

The Chief went on to answer a variety of other questions from The Flakes, including why the BPD doesn't typically place two officers per vehicle, which drugs are impacting our community the most (and how that's morphed over the last 46 years), changes in how the department responds to domestic violence calls, and much more.

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It was interesting listening to Chief Rich St. John discuss his career with the Billings Police Department in a casual environment. He sounded relaxed and happy, and is looking forward to a well-earned retirement. Take a listen below.