NATIONAL REVIEW
When Jewish Prayer at Home Becomes a Municipal Offense
Edward Blum & Rabbi Cary Kozberg
August 31, 2026

University Heights, Ohio, is a highly educated, affluent suburb of Cleveland with a significant population of Orthodox Jews. In January 2021, one of its residents, Daniel Grand, invited fellow Jews to come to his home for Sabbath prayer. For this action, the city sent him a cease-and-desist letter, which was followed by police cruisers patrolling his street to enforce the order. The pressure on Grand did not stop there. The mayor encouraged Grand’s neighbors to watch his house for signs that Jews were gathering inside. City officials demanded architectural drawings of his home, issued property citations, withheld his certificate of occupancy, and, at times, refused to collect his trash. A neighbor set up surveillance cameras aimed at his house. READ MORE