Officials Review Security Protocols After Arrest In ‘Hit List’ Case

State officials are looking at security notification protocols after the arrest of a Lebanon County man accused of posting a social media “hit list” targeting at least 20 Democratic lawmakers, including State Sen. Steve Santarsiero.

The arrest of Adam George Berryhill, 42, of Lebanon City, by Pennsylvania State Police Troop L has sparked a bipartisan concern over a communication breakdown that left many targeted legislators unaware of the threats against them for weeks.

Berryhill was arrested last week by Pennsylvania State Police Troop L and charged with a misdemeanor count of terroristic threats with intent to terrorize another. He was jailed at the Lebanon County Correctional Facility on $250,000 bail and waived his case to Common Pleas Court.

The investigation began in April after a trooper assigned to a lawmaker’s security flagged posts from an X, formerly Twitter, account linked to Berryhill.

One post on April 22 allegedly read, “Oh you like posting hit lists? Here’s mine bitches,” naming House Speaker Joanna McClinton and other high-ranking Democrats as “gun grabbing communists.”

State police said Berryhill’s posts grew increasingly threatening, referencing a planned “Memorial Day operation” and the “God given right to kill your authorities.”

Berryhill is prohibited from owning firearms due to a 2019 involuntary mental health commitment, but social media posts appear to show Berryhill with a scoped rifle and a suspected suppressor, state police said.

According to a search warrant, troopers recovered a shemagh and black ballcap were recovered as part of the probe. No weapons were listed as being recovered.

State Sen. Lindsey Williams told Spotlight PA she only learned of the threat against her life on Tuesday via a routine automated court notice about a preliminary hearing.

Williams told the news organization that she and other members mentioned in the man’s alleged posts attended a public event in Philadelphia on May 5. She said they were unaware a suspect was being investigated for a “hit list” that included their names.

State Sen. Steve Santarsiero, a Democrat who represents the 10th Senatorial District in Bucks County, said he was thankful for the arrest but warned of a broader cultural problem.

“This is another example of how political violence is becoming normalized in our country,” Santarsiero said in a statement.

The longtime lawmaker added, “We need to continue to speak out against that trend and we need to address one of the root causes: a completely unregulated and unaccountable internet and social media environment that too often reinforces the most extreme content because it feeds a sense of outrage that, in turn, makes it too easy to accept violence as an alternative. Congress needs to act, and if it doesn’t, the states need to step in.”

The state House and Senate sergeants-at-arms oversee security for members of their respective chambers, while Pennsylvania Capitol Police have jurisdiction over law enforcement matters in the Capitol and several state-owned properties. The Pennsylvania State Police and local law enforcement also can be involved in member security and threats, according to officials and legislative staff.

Pennsylvania State Police man protective details for the governor, his family, lieutenant governor, his family, their residences, and, at times, other officials.

Gov. Josh Shapiro, according to Spotlight PA, announced Wednesday that the state police have already put in place a new process to notify members of the General Assembly “immediately and directly” of any threats.

A joint statement from McClinton and other Democratic leaders described the threats as a “symptom of a greater sickness in our democracy.”

Senate Republican leaders Kim Ward and Joe Pittman confirmed that communication processes between state police and the House and Senate sergeants-at-arms are currently under review.

The incident after a string of political violence in the commonwealth. It includes a 2025 arson attack on the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg by Cody Balmer and a 2024 attempted assassination on then-candidate Donald Trump in Butler County. The reported shooter in the Trump attempt was shot dead by law enforcement.