2 weeks Ago By Tom Riese
The Governor’s Mansion in Harrisburg was targeted Sunday in an arson attack — hours after the family of Josh Shapiro celebrated Passover. And while there has been little evidence about the suspect’s motivation, some state lawmakers worry the timing is not coincidental. “It's hard to escape the idea that this may have been motivated by somebody who was targeting the governor because of his Jewish faith,” said state House member Dan Frankel, a Pittsburgh Democrat who co-chairs the legislature’s Jewish Caucus.
“It's something that reverberates around the Jewish community that I live in and I think around the state.” Hours before the attack, members of Shapiro’s extended family attended the Seder meal in the residence, located about one-and-a-half miles north of the Capitol complex. The governor’s immediate family were asleep when the attack took place.
Later Sunday, authorities said a 38-year-old suspect had turned himself in to state police. Shapiro often speaks about his Jewish faith, and on Saturday posted a photo of his Seder table, with symbolic foods eaten during a Passover meal, at the mansion along the Susquehanna River. Investigators still need to determine whether or not they consider the attack an antisemitic hate crime, the governor said during a press conference Sunday.
“I find it hard to believe it's mere coincidence that the attack occurred on the first night of Passover,” said Berks County Senator Judy Schwank, who co-chairs the Jewish Caucus with Frankel. She added that political leaders need to condemn the attack, especially as the incident received national attention. The precise motives of the suspect, identified by police as Cody Balmer, remained unclear as of Monday evening .
His social-media history provides little sense of his ideology or beliefs, though according to the criminal complaint , he said he hates Shapiro and, if he had encountered the governor, would have beaten him with a hammer he brought to break into the residence. The suspect was arraigned late in the day Monday on charges that included attempted homicide, aggravated arson, and terrorism. Court records show this is not the first time he’s been accused of violence: In 2023 he was charged with assaulting his wife and child during an argument.
His family told news outlets Monday he was “ mentally ill ” and not taking necessary medication. Still, Schwank said, “We should use this moment to make it clear that political violence, which seems to be happening more and more, is simply not acceptable.” President Donald Trump reportedly called the 38-year-old suspect “a whack job” and Vice President JD Vance called the arson “really disgusting violence” in a post online.
State House member Abigail Salisbury of Swissvale said the attack reminds some Jews of past aggression during religious celebrations. “A lot of people may not really be familiar with the holiday if they're not Jewish, and they may not understand that for a lot Jewish people this raises the specter of Jewish communities being attacked on Passover,” Salisbury said. A 2002 attack targeted an Israeli hotel during the holiday.
Frankel joined state Rep. Napoleon Nelson (D-Montgomery) last week to announce plans to re-introduce a package of bills to strengthen penalties for hate-based crimes. He said the bills were “a direct response” to the 2018 deadly Tree of Life Synagogue attack in Pittsburgh, but wants legislation to include racial minorities, the LGBTQ community and religious groups alike.
In the Senate, Schwank said she’s working on legislation that would allow Pennsylvania law enforcement to use an international definition of antisemitism law: “So the criminal justice system...
[and] local government can use that as a tool to identify hate crimes when they occur,” she said..
