Attorney General Catherine Hanaway calls Supreme Court ruling a 'big win' for gun range owners
The legal dispute began in 1983 when neighboring property owners sued the club, alleging that frequent gunfire created a nuisance.
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway is calling a unanimous Missouri Supreme Court decision upholding the dissolution of a decades-old injunction against a Franklin County shooting range "a big win" for protecting the rights of gun range owners across the state.
The court unanimously affirmed a circuit court's decision dissolving a 1987 permanent injunction that had restricted operations at Glendale Shooting Club near Robertsville, concluding the injunction was no longer equitable to enforce because of changes made by the club to reduce noise and because of protections afforded to shooting ranges under Missouri law.
Glendale Shooting Club was established in 1976 when St. Louis-area families purchased approximately 110 acres along the Meramec River in Robertsville. The club has since expanded to include five shooting ranges and hosts about 50 shooting competitions each year.
The legal dispute began in 1983 when neighboring property owners sued the club, alleging that frequent gunfire created a nuisance and that stray bullets occasionally crossed onto their land. After a trial, a circuit court imposed restrictions on the club's operations through a permanent injunction entered in 1987. In 2001, the parties agreed neither side would seek to modify the injunction for at least 20 years.
After that agreement expired, Glendale petitioned the court to dissolve the injunction, arguing that significant changes had occurred, including operational improvements designed to reduce noise. By then, neighboring property owners William Landolt and Jeri Cashin had purchased the adjacent property and argued they relied on the injunction's restrictions when buying the land and later building their home.
The circuit court twice ruled in Glendale's favor, ultimately finding after a 2025 bench trial that continuing to enforce the injunction was no longer equitable. The homeowners appealed, raising numerous constitutional challenges to Missouri's firearm range protection statute, Section 537.294, including claims involving property rights, due process, and the state and federal constitutions.
The Missouri Supreme Court rejected those arguments and affirmed the circuit court's judgment. The justices concluded the lower court had independent grounds for dissolving the injunction based on Glendale's efforts to mitigate noise and changes in circumstances, making it unnecessary to overturn that decision on constitutional grounds.
The ruling leaves Glendale Shooting Club free to operate without the restrictions imposed nearly four decades ago and reinforces legal protections available to firearm ranges under Missouri law.
