South Brooklyn City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, who was caught on camera with a firearm in her waistband while observing an anti-Israel rally last month, will see her felony gun charge dropped as prosecutors cannot prove that the weapon was “capable of firing bullets,” officials said Friday.

Vernikov, who is Jewish and has spoken out against pro-Palestinian demonstrations following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, had been charged with violating a state law against carrying a firearm at protests after photos showed a handgun protruding from her pants while she attended the Oct. 12 gathering on the campus of CUNY’s Brooklyn College.

Vernikov was not arrested during the rally, but turned herself in at the 70th Precinct with her lawyer shortly before 3 a.m. Oct. 13 after images of her circulated on social media.

When the NYPD recovered the gun, it was both unloaded and “inoperable,” missing the “recoil spring assembly” that would have allowed it to fire bullets, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office said Friday.

“In order to sustain this charge, it must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the weapon in question was capable of firing bullets,” Brooklyn DA spokesman Oren Yaniv said in a statement. “Absent such proof, we have no choice but to dismiss these charges.” 

“Peaceful protest is the right of every American, but bringing a gun to a protest is illegal and creates an unacceptable risk of harm that has no place in our city,” Yaniv added.

Vernikov’s felony charge is expected to be formally dismissed at her next court appearance on Jan. 24.

Vernikov has a concealed carry permit, but it is illegal in New York state to carry a firearm at sensitive locations such as protests or on school grounds.

The conservative Republican, who worked as a divorce and immigration attorney before entering politics, was re-elected earlier this month to represent Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach and other South Brooklyn neighborhoods.

”Councilwoman Vernikov has an outstanding reputation serving her constituency which since her re-election she will continue to do for the next two years,” her attorney, Arthur Aidala, said in a statement Friday. “She is pleased to have this all behind her and looks forward to continuing her fight on behalf of all New Yorkers to keep this City the greatest city in the world.”

Vernikov added in her own statement that she was “glad” to move on from the episode.

“Ever since Hamas has unleashed a massacre on the people of Israel on Oct. 7th, Jewish New Yorkers have been facing an unprecedented rise in hate and violence on our streets and on our college campuses,” she said, adding that “I will continue be a fearless fighter against antisemitism and for the public safety of all New Yorkers.”

The councilwoman had shared a video of herself speaking outside last month’s protest.

“If you’re standing w/ the protestors, yelling ‘GLOBALIZE THE INTIFADA’ & ‘FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA, PALESTINE WILL BE FREE’ while innocent women and babies are being raped, massacred and beheaded, you’re a HAMAS supporter & apologist who would like to bring the terror here to rid the world of the Jewish people,” she wrote alongside the clip.

Vernikov has also boasted of having close ties with Mayor Eric Adams and the mayor’s top advisor, Ingrid Lewis-Martin.

Days after her arrest, Vernikov met with Lewis-Martin for a cup of tea, where the pair discussed “atrocities committed against the Jewish people, & the fear our communities here in NYC are experiencing,” according to the councilwoman’s post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I can say with unequivocal certainty that we have true friends in this administration,” Vernikov wrote in the post.

“Thank you Dr. Ingrid Lewis-Martin and @NYCMayor for standing side by side with us even when you lose political points,” Vernikov added in another post.

Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy