Arsonist who tried to kill Pa. gov is a cautionary tale for NY's soft-on-crime pols

Cody Balmer , the arsonist who tried to kill Gov. Josh Shapiro , had a history of violence and serious mental illness that should have seen him either in jail or get long-term, supervised treatment.

Balmer was out on bail for allegedly stomping on his 10-year-old son’s broken leg and attacking his estranged wife in 2023 .

Yet the authorities did zilch because Balmer “hadn’t made threats to himself or others” and thus “did not meet the threshold for an involuntary mental health evaluation,” police said.