Full Breakdown
Trial of Palestine Action Activist Over Sledgehammer Attack at Elbit Systems Factory
4/25/2026, 6:40:11 AM
Sledgehammer Attack at Elbit Systems Factory
On 6 August 2024, Samuel Corner, a 23-year-old activist with Palestine Action, struck Police Sergeant Kate Evans with a sledgehammer during a raid on the Elbit Systems UK facility in Filton, near Bristol. The impact fractured Evans’s spine. Corner now faces a charge of grievous bodily harm with intent and several counts of criminal damage.
Background, Context, and Key Actors
Palestine Action, a UK-based campaign that occupies arms-manufacturing sites to block weapons it says are used against Palestinians, targeted Elbit Systems, an Israeli defence contractor that assembles drones, computers and other military hardware at its Filton plant for export. Six activists—Samuel Corner, Charlotte Head, Leona Kamio, Fatema Rajwani, Zoe Rogers and Jordan Devlin—participated. Sergeant Kate Evans was the police officer injured.
Timeline
6 August 2024 – Activists breach the Elbit plant, Corner strikes Sgt Evans, police deploy Pava spray. August 2024 – Corner is arrested and detained. 22 April 2026 – Woolwich Crown Court hearing begins; Corner testifies. The trial remains ongoing.
Data & Statistics
Six defendants face charges: one count of grievous bodily harm with intent (Corner) and multiple counts of criminal damage for all. Sgt Evans suffered a fractured spine. The raid destroyed drones, computers and other weapon-related equipment. Police used Pava spray on the demonstrators.
Official Statements, Responses, and Criticism
The prosecution says Corner deliberately wielded a sledgehammer, a weapon capable of serious injury, causing Sgt Evans’s spinal fracture. Defence counsel Tom Wainwright argues Corner acted impulsively to protect a fellow activist, had no prior violent record, and never intended harm. Prosecutor Deanna Heer KC highlighted the weapon’s capacity for severe injury, questioning the protective motive. Critics contend that property destruction and public-safety risks undermine legitimate protest and demand accountability.
On-the-Ground Report and Gaps
Witnesses said Sgt Evans was on her knees, facing away, when Corner swung the sledgehammer and struck her in the back. Corner reported being sprayed “straight in the face” with Pava, causing blindness and pain. Activists used sledgehammers and crowbars to paint red on walls, and a prison van was used as a battering ram to breach shutters. Defence says Corner thought security guards were harming a co-defendant; the prosecution stresses police were present and that Corner knew the sledgehammer could cause injury. No forensic evidence of the alleged “someone screaming” has been released, and actions of other defendants remain unclear.
Verbatim Quotes
- “To protect. I heard someone screaming … and I thought she was being seriously hurt by security.” — Samuel Corner, Defendant
- “I would never want to seriously hurt anyone.” — Samuel Corner, Defendant
- “straight in the face”.” — Samuel Corner, Defendant
- “When I did this I was panicking, I was in pain, I’d just been pepper-sprayed.” — Samuel Corner, Defendant
What’s Next
The trial is set to resume on 23 April 2026. Further testimony from Corner and other witnesses is expected, after which the court will deliver verdicts on the grievous bodily harm and criminal-damage charges and determine any sentences.
