A student activist has gone on trial in a criminal damage case that is likely to reignite the debate over where the dividing line is between political protest and vandalism.

CCTV footage played in Brighton Magistrates Court on March 11 showed the moment Charlie Turner, 19, a sociology student at the University of Brighton, was caught by police spraying red paint on the doors of Sovereign House, Church Street, Brighton, in the early hours of December 17 last year.

Dominic Dudkowski, prosecuting, said as well as spraying the doors Turner, who uses the name Bliss Winters, also painted the slogan “Evict Elbit” on the side windows of the building.

Mr Dudkowski said Turner, of Bedford Square, Brighton, was a member of Palestine Action, which had been targeting sites connected to the Israeli-owned arms manufacturer Elbit Systems.

But the prosecutor added there was no evidence Elbit had any connection to Sovereign House.

Members of Palestine Action protested outside the court ahead of the trial.

But inside the court, Mr Dudkowski described the events of December 17 as “not a lawful protest but an act of deliberate criminal damage”.

The court heard that Jones Lang Lascelle (JLL), which had been managing Sovereign House at the time of the attack, had itself become a target of Palestine Action because a London building they manage is used by Elbit.

However, the court heard JLL is not the landlord, and has no power to evict the company.

The court was told it cost £1,297 to repair the damage caused by the spray paint.

In an emotionally charged exchange with the prosecutor, Turner, dressed in black jeans, a white jumper and a bright pink leather jacket – who refused to give their name to police when arrested "to protect my privacy" and was joined in court by supporters – said their actions were legitimate political protest.

“I acted on my own volition on a target that was local to me,” said Turner, who added they felt “politically compelled to act”.

Hollie Collinge, defending Turner, said central to the defence case was her client’s right to freedom of expression under Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

“This is not a case about anti-social behaviour, it is about a young man who acted on a global political issue in which he passionately believes in,” she said. “This was a protest of great importance, passionately delivered.”

Addressing Turner in the dock, District Judge Amanda Kelly said she had to “balance your right to freedom of expression with the freedoms and rights of others and the need to keep law and order”.

The judge, who issued an open warning to the public to refrain from tweeting in court, said she would reserve her judgment until March 29.

Turner, who had pleaded not guilty to the charge of criminal damage at an earlier hearing, was released on conditional bail, and told not to approach or come into contact with Sovereign House.

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