Making a point is one thing, though practising it on other people's laptops is an entirely different thing.
Say this guy breaks a students laptop who brought it into class because they find it easier to take notes and study overall?
The professor takes the laptop from the student, smashes it into million pieces, and the student not only loses a pricey piece of equipment, but also lots of data pertaining to his/her studies.
If he did it on a students laptop who actually used it in the described capacity, a lawsuit would be justified, along with proper reimbursement of material damage (not to mention loss of info).
Professors may have a lot to say in their classrooms, but this kind of material abuse and expecting no repercussions for actions that resulted in financial/information damage is absurd.
Curbing distractions in class is one thing and it's good to try to eliminate them, but this guy isn't too clever if he thinks some students won't file a lawsuit if he does it on students laptops.