Brooklyn DA to drop gun charges against NYC councilwoman who brought gun to rally

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez’s office on Friday announced that it planned to drop a gun possession charge against the city councilwoman who brought a gun to a pro-Palestine rally in October.

Inna Vernikov, who is Jewish, attended the rally to present counter-messaging in support of Israel. She was arrested for allegedly violating a city ordinance prohibiting the carrying of firearms at a protest, but authorities indicated that the gun appeared inoperable.

"The firearm recovered by the NYPD in this case was unloaded and missing the recoil spring assembly, rendering it inoperable, according to the NYPD’s lab report," Gonzalez spokesperson Oren Yaniv said, according to Politico. "In order to sustain this charge, it must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the weapon in question was capable of firing bullets. Absent such proof, we have no choice but to dismiss these charges."

The Republican lawmaker later told Politico that "I’m glad this is behind me and I look forward to the next two years working for my constituents."

"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 went on. "I will continue to be a fearless fighter against antisemitism and for the public safety of all New Yorkers."

An X post from Vernikov shows her at the Brooklyn College rally.

"Here they are screaming and yelling 'intifada, globalize the intifada' when Jewish women, children, Holocaust survivors, and babies are being beheaded, slaughtered, and massacred," she said in the video. Photos taken the same day appeared to show her with the firearm visible.

Vernikov possesses a concealed carry permit, Politico noted, though a recent state law imposed tight restrictions on locations in which permit holders may lawfully carry a firearm.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.