Governor’s mansion arson suspect cited Shapiro’s positions on Israel-Palestine conflict, police say
by Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-Star
April 16, 2025
Gov. Josh Shapiro flatly condemned political violence without commenting on the motives of the man accused of firebombing his official residence, after court documents revealed 38-year-old Cody Balmer made a reference to Palestine in a call to authorities after the attack.
“I know there are people out there who want to adopt their own political viewpoints or their own world views to what happened and why. I choose not to participate in that,” Shapiro told reporters Wednesday during a stop in Derry Township, Dauphin County. He and his family were awakened during the attack about 2 a.m. Sunday by a state trooper assigned to his security detail and directed to evacuate the residence.
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Shapiro noted he had similarly avoided speculation after the attempted assassination of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in July and the arrest in Altoona of the man charged with shooting and killing United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
“This kind of violence has no place in our society, regardless of what motivates it,” Shapiro said. “This level of violence has to end, and it has to be roundly condemned by everyone, both political parties, people from all different walks of life.”
Cody Balmer, charged with attempted murder and terrrorism in the firebombing of Gov. Josh Shapiro’s official residence Sunday, is escorted from his first court appearance Monday, April 14, 2025. (Ian Karbal/Capital-Star)
In an interview Tuesday on WILK-AM in Wilkes-Barre, U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser (R-9th District) expressed sympathy for Shapiro and his family, but was critical of Shapiro’s opposition to the Trump administration. He suggested that it was contributing to political tension, adding, “They got to tone it down.”
“I mean, every action Josh Shapiro has taken against the president has either been a lawsuit or a falsehood,” Meuser claimed in the interview.
Apparently surprised by a reporter’s summation of Meuser’s remarks, Shapiro said elected leaders have a responsibility to speak and act with moral clarity. “It would appear that the congressman failed to measure up to that,” Shapiro said.
Members of Pennsylvania Islamic organizations condemned the attack but also expressed worry that Balmer’s statements could intensify Islamophobia across the nation.
Court officials released search warrants Wednesday for Balmer’s home, a storage locker and for a sample of his DNA that provided new information about his actions after the attack on the Governor’s Residence around 2 a.m. Sunday morning.
Balmer is charged with attempted murder, aggravated arson, terrorism, aggravated assault and related offenses. A Dauphin County district judge ordered him held without bail during his arraignment Monday. Relatives of Balmer told CBS news and the Associated Press that he had struggled with mental illness and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had been treated in a psychiatric hospital twice.
Police allege Balmer scaled a fence to enter the grounds, broke two windows and used Molotov cocktails to set fire to public areas of the residence including the state dining room where Shapiro had hosted Passover Seder with family and guests hours earlier. They said Balmer admitted that he hated Shapiro in an interview with investigators after his arrest.
Shapiro, who is Jewish, has drawn criticism for his support of Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks that killed more than 1,200 Israelis. It centered on his remarks labeling pro-Palestine protests against Jewish-owned businesses antisemitic and urging the University of Pennsylvania and other institutions to quell campus protests.
After fleeing the Governor’s Residence, Balmer called 911 and told a dispatcher his name, stating Shapiro needed to know Balmer “… will not take part in his plans for what he wants to do to the Palestinian people.”
Balmer also said in the 911 call Shapiro needs to stop having Balmer’s friends killed and “our people have been put through too much by that monster,” according to the search warrants. He concluded the call by telling the dispatcher “all [Shapiro] has is a banquet hall to clean up,” police know where to find him, and that he would confess “to everything that I had done.”
The warrant concluded Balmer’s remarks demonstrate his political motives and requested court approval to seize electronic devices and writings that mention Shapiro, Israel, Palestine or Gaza.
Governor Josh Shapiro and the Pennsylvania State Police provide an update on the act of arson that took place at the Governor’s Residence. (Courtesy of Commonwealth Media Services)
Shapiro said it was for prosecutors to determine what motivated the attack, and referred further questions to the Dauphin County district attorney’s office and the U.S. Department of Justice. A spokesperson for U.S. Attorney John Gurganus said he had no comment Wednesday.
Under Pennsylvania law. ethnic intimidation is an offense that can be added to enhance another offense such as aggravated assault by increasing the possible penalties.
More than two dozen mosques and Islamic community organizations across the statehave signed a letter expressing shock and outrage about the attack and condemning violence. The letter says the group’s members pray for Shapiro and his family’s safety and noted that Shapiro and previous governors have opened the official residence to leaders of diverse faiths.
“The horrifying images of the damage inflicted upon this historic space have shaken our community and reinforced our concern that the rising tide of hateful rhetoric and the current political climate pose a grave threat to our shared vision of a peaceful, inclusive Pennsylvania,” the letter says.
Ahmet Tekelioglu, executive director of the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said the acts Balmer is accused of are not those of the pro-Palistine movement.
“It’s important to note the pro-Palistine movement in the United States has followed the tradition in American democracy of nonviolent protest,” Tekelioglu said, adding that while CAIR has disagreed with some of Shapiro’s statements, “We don’t think that this is, in a real democracy, how things get resolved.”
Tekelioglu said CAIR Philadelphia has provided Mosques, schools and community centers with additional guidance on security and increased communication with law enforcement.
“There’s already a heightened sense of risk given the current administration’s attacks on our communities,” he said.
Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Tim Lambert for questions: info@penncapital-star.com.
