Inquest into the death of Gregory Merriman

58y · Male·acute myocardial infarction caused by ischaemic heart disease

Gregory Merriman, a 58-year-old Aboriginal man, died from acute myocardial infarction caused by advanced ischaemic heart disease while in custody at Metropolitan Reception and Remand Centre on 27 December 2022. He experienced a cardiac event approximately 30 minutes after CS gas was deployed during a prison incident. Although he was not involved in the altercation, he was locked in his cell post-incident. Key clinical lessons include: (1) the importance of earlier comprehensive chronic disease screening for Aboriginal inmates, particularly given family history of cardiovascular disease—a planned screening was not completed during his final custody period; (2) inadequate documentation of the discharge summary from his recent hospital admission (which showed ECG changes suggestive of significant coronary disease); and (3) the value of clear post-incident welfare protocols. The coroner found the use of force was lawful and stress from the incident was unlikely to have precipitated the infarction given his pre-existing severe disease. However, systemic improvements in health screening access and timely information transfer between healthcare systems remain necessary.