Lawsuit over St. Louis Park basketball hoop is dismissed as family finds joy in Timberwolves run

The neighbor dispute over a driveway basketball hoop in St. Louis Park that turned into a legal showdown, capturing the attention of Minnesota basketball players and fans, is over — for now.

A Hennepin County judge Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit that sought to prevent one family's children from playing basketball using their own driveway hoop, according to court records.

Ross and Lilly Moeding celebrated the dismissal shortly before tip-off Tuesday night when the Timberwolves entered Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against Oklahoma City Thunder.

They gathered in their living room with sons Everest, 9, and Elliot, 12, wearing Anthony Edwards jerseys and cheering on the team that has been cheering them on.

Edwards' manager Justin Holland gifted the family tickets to a game at Target Center earlier this season. The team's chief communications officer also gave them tickets.

"It's been really heartwarming to see how the community has just rallied behind our family in a big way," Lilly Moeding said.

Earlier on Tuesday evening, the Moedings were visited by another supporter: Parker Fox, forward for the Gopher's men's basketball team. Fox gave the brothers his signed size 14 Nikes and another pair of size 16 shoes signed by teammate Dawson Garcia.

Tuesday was a happy day in the Moedings' household after a yearlong battle over their basketball hoop.

Their neighbors, Julia and Fred Ramos, filed for a motion for temporary injunction last week alleging the Moedings committed "character assassination" in the media, adding that they have also received death threats. The Moedings were served a cease-and-desist letter Monday with threats to sue them for defamation.

The Ramoses have argued that the proximity of the hoop and any wayward basketballs that rolled onto their property posed privacy and safety concerns. They also said the safety of the Moeding children was in jeopardy when they retrieved balls as the Ramoses planned to start a construction project at their home.

"On one occasion, a child ran through my driveway, including running all the way back into my private backyard and right in front of my detached garage. I could have been backing out of my garage at that time or had tripping hazards on my driveway," the Ramoses said in a court document.

The Ramoses didn't respond to requests for comment Tuesday.

It was a ritual for the Moeding boys to immediately pick up a basketball after school and shoot around.

"I think there's just like some universal truths around letting kids be kids, and letting kids play, that has resonated with people, and just the whole abuse of the legal system," Lilly Moeding said.

Ross Moeding said the experience served as a valuable lesson for his kids.

"They've learned to kind of stand up for what they believe in, and they saw that their parents are willing to," he said. "We've told them many times, 'We're fighting for you guys. We're fighting so that you guys can just play.' "

He said the legal ordeal has also "shed new light" on the judicial system, such as not recouping legal fees.

They shared an update to the family's online fundraiser to offset legal costs and help pay to build a longer fence.

The Moedings have raised nearly $29,000 in the fundraiser and plan to donate the rest of the money after legal fees to 612 Promise, a nonprofit providing access to sports programming for disadvantaged youth in the Twin Cities.

"We're happy that the court dismissed the temporary injunction and the overarching lawsuit, but we don't feel like we're done, unfortunately," Lilly Moeding said.

They anticipate their neighbors will file an appeal and still pursue a defamation lawsuit.

The family said the judge's dismissal "validates what we've long maintained — that our family's driveway basketball hoop does not violate city zoning rules — and we're incredibly grateful to the city of St. Louis Park and the court for recognizing that truth."

The neighborly dispute dates back to 2024, after the Ramos family moved into their home. At one point, the St. Louis Park Community Mediation Services program was involved, but the two families failed to come to an agreement.

Earlier this month, St. Louis Park City Attorney Jared Shepherd sided with the Moedings. In a memo, he said the Ramos family had no legal basis in their effort to stop the Moeding children from using the hoop in their own driveway.

City regulations stipulate that a sports court structure must be at least 5 feet from property lines, but St. Louis Park amended its zoning code earlier this year, saying that a driveway is not considered a sports court.

Lilly Moeding said there were moments when she thought they should just take the hoop down.

"But at the end of the day ... our kids deserve to play basketball in our driveway, just like thousands of other kids across the metro area," she said. "We are not backing down because we are not doing anything wrong."

Kyeland Jackson of the Minnesota Star Tribune contributed to this story.