Two shootings at Anaconda bars within ten months have prompted at least one Montana bar owner to reconsider his establishment’s security measures, even though his business is located hours away in Billings.

A Pattern of Violence

The most recent incident follows the August shooting at Anaconda’s Owl Bar, where Michael Brown opened fire and killed four people. Authorities conducted a weeks-long manhunt before apprehending Brown. A second shooting at an Anaconda bar has now occurred within the same ten-month stretch, renewing concerns about safety in bars statewide.

A Billings Owner Takes Notice

Rick Steimmetz, who owns the Tap Inn in Billings, said the back-to-back incidents have forced him to evaluate what more he could do to protect his staff and customers. The Tap Inn already has cameras installed, but Steimmetz said he is weighing additional security protocols following the violence in Anaconda. “Makes you kind of think about it a little bit more of what you can do to prevent it,” he said.

Bartender Tammy Scheeler said the shootings have changed how she thinks about her job. “It’s scary to be honest. What the hell is going on in this world?” Scheeler said she and other Tap Inn employees are feeling the psychological weight of the incidents, even at a remove from Anaconda.

Broader Safety Questions

The two Anaconda shootings in less than a year have raised wider questions about security standards at Montana bars and nightlife venues. Steimmetz acknowledged the incidents have surfaced questions about what obligations business owners have to harden their establishments against the possibility of armed violence.

Montana lawmakers have shown growing interest in public safety infrastructure more broadly. An interim legislative committee recently examined school safety funding gaps across the state, reflecting a broader conversation at the Capitol about where security investments are most needed and how they should be funded.

No statewide legislation specific to bar security requirements is currently under active consideration, but the repeat incidents in Anaconda are likely to keep the issue visible heading into the 2026 election cycle, when candidates across the state will face questions about public safety priorities.