Gov. Shapiro, family safe after arsonist targets governor's mansion

Pennsylvania State Police say a man is in custody and facing arson, attempted murder and terrorism charges after a fire broke out at the Pennsylvania governor’s residence in Harrisburg at around 2 a.m. on Sunday morning. 

Officials said Sunday evening that 38-year-old Cody Balmer, of Harrisburg, is being charged with setting a fire that forced Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family to evacuate in the early morning hours and caused “significant damage” to the building. 

A visibly upset Shapiro spoke to reporters from outside the residence Sunday evening, thanking State Police for keeping his family safe, while also offering gratitude to Harrisburg firefighters. “Last night, we experienced an attack not just on our family, but on the entire commonwealth of Pennsylvania here at the governor's residence,” Shapiro said. 

Shapiro said details about Balmer’s motive are still under investigation, and the governor went on to condemn political violence from outside his fire-ravaged home. 

“This type of violence is not OK. This kind of violence is becoming far too common in our society, and I don’t give a damn if it’s coming from one particular side or the other, directed at one particular party or another, or one particular person or another – it is not OK, and it has to stop,” he said.

“If this individual was trying to deter me from doing my job as your governor, rest assured, I will find a way to work even harder than I was just yesterday for the good people of Pennsylvania,” the governor added. 

The fire occurred just hours after the Shapiro family celebrated the first night of the Jewish holiday of Passover, which celebrates the exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Shapiro said Sunday that the fire at the governor’s residence wouldn’t deter him and his family from continuing to celebrate Passover. “No one will deter me or my family – or any Pennsylvanian – from celebrating their faith openly and proudly.”

Pennsylvania State Police officials at Sunday’s press conference said the agency will be conducting a multifaceted review to determine how the incident occurred. They said Balmer was able to scale a fence to enter the property before breaking into the residence and using “homemade incendiary devices” to set fire to the building.

In a post on X Sunday morning, Shapiro said he and his family woke up to the State Police banging on the door after the fire was detected, and that the Harrisburg Bureau of Fire put out the fire as he and his family were evacuated from the building. “Thank God no one was injured,” Shapiro said.

“Every day, we stand with the law enforcement and first responders who run towards danger to protect our communities,” the governor said. “Last night, they did so for our family – and Lori and I are eternally grateful to them for keeping us safe.”

Some of the fire’s destruction could be seen from the sidewalk along Front Street in Harrisburg, including several windows blown out in the back of the building. Law enforcement and other first responders could be seen on and around the property Sunday morning as the investigation into the fire continued. 

Former Gov. Tom Ridge said in a statement Sunday that he was thankful to learn that Shapiro and his family were safely evacuated from the residence. “The images showing the damage to the home we lived in with our children for nearly eight years are heartbreaking. All of us should feel safe in our homes, especially when that home is our state’s official residence, which makes this particularly shocking,” Ridge said. “Whoever is responsible for this attack – to both the Shapiro family and our Commonwealth – must be held to account.”

Ridge’s successor, former Gov. Mark Schweiker, also thanked first responders for their efforts. “Kathy and I hope all Pennsylvanians will join us in keeping Josh, Lori and their family in their prayers,” Schweiker said in a statement.

The attack on the residence is just the latest example of political violence in the commonwealth and the country. Then-presidential candidate Donald Trump was shot in the ear during a failed assassination attempt during a rally in Butler. The attack on the governor’s residence is also not the first time a building with political significance has been targeted, including a bomb threat against the Montgomery County Republican Committee last year and the foiled pipe bomb attacks against both the Democratic and Republican National Committee Headquarters on Jan. 5, 2021, just before the U.S. Capitol insurrection.

This story has been updated to include new information from Gov. Josh Shapiro, the Pennsylvania State Police and Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo.