Update 6:05 p.m., Tuesday
Billings police said on social media that dispatch was contacted by a "concerned citizen" who said they saw a suspicious man across from the school wearing a face covering and carrying a large fixed-blade knife.
An officer went to speak with the man, confirmed as Gabriel Metcalf, who did not speak to the officer but pointed at his sign that read "Our Rights Matter." He told MTN News in an interview that he had a gardening trowel and a knife in a sheath. He was not arrested.
Billings police are once again keeping an eye on a Billings man who conducted armed patrols on a sidewalk across from Broadwater Elementary School in the summer of 2023.
Watch the video below:
On Monday, Gabriel Cowan Metcalf posted a sign outside his home reading, "Our rights matter," which prompted a visit from Billings police. He was not arrested.
Two years ago, Metcalf was sentenced in 2024 to three years probation by U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters in connection with the armed patrols in front of Broadwater. His actions forced the school to move children away from the playground area nearest the home, even though Metcalf said he meant the school no harm and was merely trying to protect his property.
Metcalf pleaded guilty in March to one charge of unlawful possession of a firearm in a school zone.
His federal gun conviction was overturned by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last September after judges ruled prosecutors failed to prove he knowingly violated federal law.
MTN's Charlie Klepps spoke with Metcalf off camera for a couple of hours on Monday but he refused to give an on-camera interview.
