SCOTUS to hear case of Orthodox Jewish meeting permit

The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to hear the case of an Orthodox Jewish man who says city officials required him to obtain a permit to pray with friends at home. Daniel Grand said officials in University Heights, Ohio, sent him a cease-and-desist letter after he invited around a dozen men to come pray at his house in 2021. He said officials said he needed a special use permit to host the group. Grand applied for the permit, but later withdrew his application after he said he faced opposition from the city and nearby residents. He sued city officials in 2022 for violating his religious and free speech rights, but lower courts said Grand failed to fully exhaust his permit-appeal rights and dismissed his case.

The city has weaponized zoning laws against religious meetings, said John Bursch, an attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom, which represents Grand. Meanwhile, the city has allowed similar-sized gatherings, such as book clubs or poker nights, to meet at people’s homes without issue, Bursch said.

What has the city said about the dispute? In its own brief to the Supreme Court, city officials said they took no enforcement action against Grand. He was and still is free to submit a new application for a permit, officials said.

Why did Grand want to host the prayer group at his house? Grand said his religion requires that he pray three times a day with at least 10 men. His beliefs require him to walk, rather than drive, to a synagogue to pray. In January 2021, he hoped to invite men over to his house for prayer.

After the city barred this meeting, Grand said he applied for the permit that officials said he needed. But Grand said that at a city hearing for the permit, citizens spoke out against his Jewish faith. He also alleged that city officials harassed him and ordered police to monitor his home.

Dig deeper: Read my interview with Grand about his plea to the Supreme Court.