Judge rejects probation for anti-drug activist in gun case

JERSEY CITY, N.J. – A judge has rejected probation for a Pennsylvania man arrested last year outside New York with a vehicle full of weapons while heading to the city to rescue a teenage girl from a drug den.

New Jersey Superior Court Judge Sheila Venable ruled Friday that John Cramsey should go to prison, saying his “armed vigilantism must be deterred.”

Cramsey pleaded guilty to weapons charges. The anti-drug activist and former gun range owner from East Greensville and two associates were arrested outside the Holland Tunnel. He told authorities they were going to rescue the girl, who later died of an overdose.

The judge delayed his sentencing hearing Friday while his lawyers appeal her decision on their motion for probation.