Shackling dying man Eric Whittaker to bed was 'horrific', coroner hears

The NSW coroner hears that Aboriginal prisoner Eric Whittaker was unconscious and would not have been able to move

The NSW coroner has heard it was "horrific" that Aboriginal man Eric Whittaker, who died in hospital after suffering a brain haemorrhage in prison custody, had been shackled to the bed in the last days of his life despite being unconscious and unresponsive.

An emergency medicine researcher from the University of New South Wales, Anna Holdgate, went on to tell the court "we would only use restraint as a last resort" and "for the briefest time possible".