\n\t\t\t\t\t\tA man who scaled an iron security fence in the middle of the night, eluded police and used beer bottles filled with gasoline to ignite the occupied Pennsylvania governor\u2019s mansion pleaded guilty Tuesday to the attempted murder of Gov. Josh Shapiro.Cody Balmer also entered pleas to terrorism, 22 counts of arson, aggravated arson, burglary, aggravated assault, 21 counts of reckless endangerment and loitering in the April 13 attack that caused millions of dollars in damage to the state-owned brick building.Under a plea deal, Balmer was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison, far less than he could have faced if the case went to trial. He declined to address the judge about the crime, answering questions with short, simple answers.Defense attorney Bryan Walk said Balmer \u201cis taking full responsibility\u201d and paying \u201ca hefty price for a man who’s 38 years old.\u201dAccountability for political violenceShapiro said afterward that he and his family support the plea deal, and that it provides real accountability.They had to be awakened and evacuated, but no one was injured in the fire. The multiple arson and endangerment charges reflected the number of people in the residence at the time, including guests and state troopers.Shapiro lamented the impact of increasing political violence, noting he’s heard from leaders around the world about their own sense of vulnerability and from potential political candidates who say they don\u2019t want to run because it would put their families at risk. The Democrat had spoken about eradicating hate days after the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk, and has criticized what he called the subsequent \u201crhetoric of rage\u201d from Republican President Donald Trump, who was himself grazed by a bullet last year while campaigning in Pennsylvania.Shapiro said Tuesday that political violence shouldn\u2019t be accepted as the normal course of business for elected officials.Shapiro called it an \u201congoing effort\u201d to ease his children\u2019s worries in the aftermath of the attack.\u201cWhy would someone want to do us harm, our kids will ask. How were they able to get so far into the governor\u2019s residence, a place that is supposed to be the safest place we could possibly be?\u201d Shapiro said at a news conference after the plea.Video of the security breachSecurity video played in court shows Balmer breaking a window, launching one Molotov cocktail into a dining room often used to entertain crowds, then using a small sledgehammer to break a different window to crawl into the space. The footage shows Balmer made it far enough into the building to kick the doors leading to where Shapiro and his family were sleeping, but he couldn’t get through.He ignites a second fire, then leaves the room and walks back across the yard, never encountering the state police at the property. Judge Deborah Curcillo called the video \u201chorrific\u201d and \u201cvery frightening.\u201dShapiro and his wife, Lori, provided a victim statement read in court that described how they were left feeling exposed in unimaginable ways, calling it \u201ca fear and anxiety we are learning to live with.\u201d Balmer told police he planned to beat Shapiro with the small sledgehammer if he had encountered him after breaking in, according to court documents. Balmer turned himself in the next afternoon.Questions about motive and mental healthThe attack hours after the family celebrated the Jewish holiday of Passover with a Seder in the residence raised questions about Balmer\u2019s motivation, but Balmer told The Associated Press in a May letter from jail that the governor’s faith wasn’t a factor.\u201cHe can be Jewish, Muslim, or a purple people eater for all I care and as long as he leaves me and mine alone,\u201d Balmer wrote.Balmer told investigators he was concerned about the potential death toll of the war in Gaza, and his comments indicated he was willing to take a life for what he viewed as an offset to the war, Chardo said. Balmer told the AP in a brief June 9 video interview from Camp Hill State Prison that he did think beforehand about whether children might be injured.\u201cDoes anyone ever consider children?\u201d Balmer said in June. \u201cIt doesn’t seem that way. I sure as hell did. I’m glad no one got hurt.\u201d Asked why he felt Shapiro had somehow done him wrong, Balmer replied: \u201cI’m not going to answer that.\u201dBalmer\u2019s mother said days after his arrest that she had tried to get him assistance for mental health issues, but \u201cnobody would help.\u201d Court proceedings were delayed while he received mental health treatment, his lawyer said.A letter from Balmer’s relatives read in court on Tuesday said he stopped taking his medication, leading to manic episodes and a \u201cdark and difficult path.\u201dBalmer previously told a judge he was an unemployed welder with no income or savings and \u201ca lot of children.\u201dThe residence, built in 1968, did not have sprinklers. The fire charred walls, tables, buffet serving dishes, plates and a piano. Window panes and brick around doors and windows were also damaged.Work to fix the damage and to bolster its security features continues.___Associated Press reporter Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this report.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tHARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
A man who scaled an iron security fence in the middle of the night, eluded police and used beer bottles filled with gasoline to ignite the occupied Pennsylvania governor\u2019s mansion<\/a> pleaded guilty Tuesday to the attempted murder of Gov. Josh Shapiro.<\/p>\n Cody Balmer also entered pleas to terrorism, 22 counts of arson, aggravated arson, burglary, aggravated assault, 21 counts of reckless endangerment and loitering in the April 13 attack that caused millions of dollars in damage to the state-owned brick building.<\/p>\n Under a plea deal, Balmer was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison, far less than he could have faced if the case went to trial. He declined to address the judge about the crime, answering questions with short, simple answers.<\/p>\n Defense attorney Bryan Walk said Balmer \u201cis taking full responsibility\u201d and paying \u201ca hefty price for a man who’s 38 years old.\u201d<\/p>\n Accountability for political violence<\/p>\n Shapiro said afterward that he and his family support the plea deal, and that it provides real accountability.<\/p>\n They had to be awakened and evacuated<\/a>, but no one was injured in the fire. The multiple arson and endangerment charges reflected the number of people in the residence at the time, including guests and state troopers.<\/p>\n Shapiro lamented the impact of increasing political violence, noting he’s heard from leaders around the world about their own sense of vulnerability and from potential political candidates who say they don\u2019t want to run because it would put their families at risk. The Democrat had spoken about eradicating hate days after the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk, and has criticized what he called the subsequent \u201crhetoric of rage\u201d from Republican President Donald Trump, who was himself grazed by a bullet last year while campaigning in Pennsylvania.<\/p>\n Shapiro said Tuesday that political violence shouldn\u2019t be accepted as the normal course of business for elected officials.<\/p>\n Shapiro called it an \u201congoing effort\u201d to ease his children\u2019s worries in the aftermath of the attack.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would someone want to do us harm, our kids will ask. How were they able to get so far into the governor\u2019s residence, a place that is supposed to be the safest place we could possibly be?\u201d Shapiro said at a news conference after the plea.<\/p>\n Video of the security breach<\/p>\n Security video played in court shows Balmer breaking a window, launching one Molotov cocktail into a dining room often used to entertain crowds, then using a small sledgehammer to break a different window to crawl into the space. The footage shows Balmer made it far enough into the building to kick the doors leading to where Shapiro and his family were sleeping, but he couldn’t get through.<\/p>\n He ignites a second fire, then leaves the room and walks back across the yard, never encountering the state police at the property.<\/p>\n Judge Deborah Curcillo called the video \u201chorrific\u201d and \u201cvery frightening.\u201d<\/p>\n Shapiro and his wife, Lori, provided a victim statement read in court that described how they were left feeling exposed in unimaginable ways, calling it \u201ca fear and anxiety we are learning to live with.\u201d <\/p>\n Balmer told police he planned to beat Shapiro with the small sledgehammer if he had encountered him after breaking in, according to court documents. Balmer turned himself in<\/a> the next afternoon.<\/p>\n Questions about motive and mental health<\/p>\n The attack hours after the family celebrated the Jewish holiday of Passover with a Seder in the residence raised questions about Balmer\u2019s motivation<\/a>, but Balmer told The Associated Press in a May letter from jail that the governor’s faith wasn’t a factor.<\/p>\n \u201cHe can be Jewish, Muslim, or a purple people eater for all I care and as long as he leaves me and mine alone,\u201d Balmer wrote.<\/p>\n Balmer told investigators he was concerned about the potential death toll of the war in Gaza, and his comments indicated he was willing to take a life for what he viewed as an offset to the war, Chardo said.<\/p>\n Balmer told the AP in a brief June 9 video interview from Camp Hill State Prison that he did think beforehand about whether children might be injured.<\/p>\n \u201cDoes anyone ever consider children?\u201d Balmer said in June. \u201cIt doesn’t seem that way. I sure as hell did. I’m glad no one got hurt.\u201d Asked why he felt Shapiro had somehow done him wrong, Balmer replied: \u201cI’m not going to answer that.\u201d<\/p>\n Balmer\u2019s mother said days after his arrest that she had tried to get him assistance for mental health issues<\/a>, but \u201cnobody would help.\u201d Court proceedings were delayed while he received mental health treatment<\/a>, his lawyer said.<\/p>\n A letter from Balmer’s relatives read in court on Tuesday said he stopped taking his medication, leading to manic episodes and a \u201cdark and difficult path.\u201d<\/p>\n Balmer previously told a judge he was an unemployed welder with no income or savings and \u201ca lot of children.\u201d<\/p>\n The residence, built in 1968, did not have sprinklers. The fire charred walls, tables, buffet serving dishes, plates and a piano. Window panes and brick around doors and windows were also damaged.<\/p>\n Work to fix the damage<\/a> and to bolster its security<\/a> features continues<\/a>.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Associated Press reporter Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A man who scaled an iron security fence in the middle of the night, eluded police and used…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5344,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[4862,36,4860,323,1404,32,4863,422,2476,4859,37,33,1400,325,28,1398,30,29,206,421,3415,445,4861],"class_list":["post-5343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-aggravated-assault","tag-arson","tag-attack","tag-attempted-murder","tag-beer-bottle","tag-cody-balmer","tag-count","tag-fire","tag-gov-shapiro","tag-governors-mansion","tag-harrisburg","tag-josh-shapiro","tag-other-charge","tag-passover","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-governors-residence","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news","tag-police","tag-residence","tag-shapiro","tag-terrorism","tag-window-pane"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5343"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5343\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5344"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}