‘Listen’: Indigenous youth warned of deadly jail cycle

By MIKLOS BOLZA

The brother of a First Nations inmate who died from capsicum spray being used to break up a prison fight has urged young people to avoid the same tragic fate.

Greg Merriman had hoped to mentor First Nations youth before his premature death, trying to broker peace during a fight over cookies.

He might still inspire positive change after his emotional brother, a fellow Stolen Generations survivor, urged Indigenous youth to learn from their stories on Friday.

Greg Merriman collapsed in December 2022 when pepper spray used to break up a fight in a Sydney prison wafted into his cell.

The Yuin grandfather, 58, had earlier tried to break up the brawl, which ignited after extra cookies were given to one inmate.

Mark Merriman conducts a smoking ceremony before inquest findings on his brother’s death in custody. (Miklos Bolza)

Prison officers later found him unresponsive and he could not be revived.

A coroner on Friday found he died of a heart attack.

“I just miss him every day,” older brother Mark Merriman told reporters outside court.

Before conducting a smoking ceremony, Mark warned of the cycle that entangled him and his brother.

The two brothers had dealt with the trauma of being removed from their parents as part of the Stolen Generations.

Each gave evidence at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

A larrikin and a peacemaker

While Mark broke free of the vicious cycle of going in and out of prison, his brother was not so lucky.

He urged people to be careful to avoid the criminal justice system, with death related to pepper spray a reality.

“That’s what I’m trying to say to all people, I mean young people, anybody out there that’s listening to my story,” he said.

“(These are) the repercussions that could happen to you – it could be death.

“And don’t say … I haven’t walked in your shoes.

“I’ve worn out your shoes. I’ve worn every pair of shoes going.”

Inside court, Deputy State Coroner Harriet Grahame recalled Greg Merriman aspired to become a mentor for First Nations youth once he was released.

She earlier heard testimony that he was a larrikin and a peacemaker who would give the shirt off his back to someone in need.

The experienced coroner on Friday offered condolences to the Merriman family, sharing their concerns about the high number of First Nations people in custody.

She noted the State’s top coroner, Teresa O’Sullivan, had recently highlighted as “profoundly distressing” that Indigenous deaths in NSW custody reached a record high in 2025.

Coroner Harriet Grahame offered condolences to the Merriman family. (Miklos Bolza/AAP PHOTOS)

That record was reached after the number of First Nations people in custody increased by 18.9 per cent over five years.

The number of Indigenous inmates on pre-trial remand also surged by 63 per cent over that period.

“The entrenched over-representation of First Nations people in the criminal justice system is a systemic issue … grounded in the ongoing effects of colonisation,” Ms Grahame said on Friday.

Recommendations

The gap causing poor healthcare and health outcomes for Aboriginal people also had not closed, she said.

“The importance of health screening and culturally safe care for all First Nations inmates cannot be overstated,” Ms Grahame said.

The coroner recommended that NSW Corrective Services amend its policies around the use of chemical munitions such as capsicum spray.

In particular, she suggested prison officers should be trained in identifying those who were affected by the gas and needed medical attention.

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AAP