Gov. Josh Shapiro on Wednesday declined to speculate on the motivation of the man charged with setting fire to his official residence over the weekend, despite reports suggesting the suspect was angry about the war in Gaza.
Shapiro told reporters that some people were viewing the devastating Sunday morning fire through their own political lenses and drawing conclusions that aligned with their personal beliefs. He said he had no interest in doing the same.
“Prosecutors will ultimately determine what motivated this,” Shapiro said during a news conference Wednesday. “But right now, I think what we’re trying to do is find the good in society, not be deterred from our work, not be deterred from practicing our faith proudly.”
During Wednesday’s briefing, Shapiro, who is Jewish, told reporters that while the attack was frightening for his family, it would not deter him from his duties as governor or from openly practicing his faith.
“Nothing he could do would deter me from doing my job as governor, nothing he could do would deter me from proudly and openly practicing my faith,” Shapiro said.
He called for the condemnation of all violence across the political spectrum.
“I said after the assassination attempt on the president in Butler, I said in Altoona after we captured the individual who shot and killed a U.S. health care CEO, and I said on Sunday that this kind of violence has no place in our society, regardless of what motivates it,” the governor said.
“I know that there are people out there who want to ascribe their own viewpoints as to what happened here and why,” Shapiro said. “I choose not to participate in that.”
Shapiro and his family were asleep in the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg around 2 a.m. Sunday when homemade Molotov cocktails erupted in the dining hall where the family and guests had celebrated Passover seder hours earlier.
Troopers said Cody A. Balmer, 38, of Penbrook Borough, has been charged with scaling the fence around the state-owned residence and igniting the blaze by throwing gasoline-filled beer bottles into the home. Troopers working the overnight security detail woke the Shapiro family and quickly removed them from the burning home.
Court documents revealed that Balmer admitted to harboring hatred toward Shapiro, and a search warrant indicated he also expressed anger regarding what he perceived to be the governor’s stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Shapiro said the state police and Pennsylvania Department of General Services are looking at security for the Governor’s Residence. He declined to discuss specific potential changes.
The governor stated that he has “total faith” in his security detail, which protects the governor wherever he goes, including at his Montgomery County personal home.
The fire, which was put down by Harrisburg firefighters, caused significant damage to the state building and may have destroyed or damaged Shapiro family possessions and Passover ritual items brought from their personal home, the governor said.
In speaking of the damage, Shapiro said historic art and artifacts loaned to the residence from the state may have been destroyed, but officials are still taking an inventory.
Despite the attack, Shapiro stated his commitment to continuing to invite the public as guests to the mansion and hosting events like Halloween and Christmas open houses.
The governor, who is seen as a rising political figure in the national scene, said he wants the Governor’s Residence to feel “comfortable and safe for me and my family, for our staff and for visitors all across Pennsylvania who come there.”
The Democratic governor said he had received messages from dozens of governors and first ladies from other states and numerous Pennsylvania lawmakers from both parties. He noted the state’s living past governors have also reached out.
Despite President Donald Trump telling reporters the alleged arsonist was “probably just a whack job,” Shapiro said he has not heard from the president.
Shapiro and top state officials have heard from the U.S. attorney general and FBI director in the wake of the attack that captured national attention.
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