Evidence
11 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-11).
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[1]DANFS, Biddle III (DDG-5) (NHHC, updated Robert J. Cressman 27 November 2024; Wayback capture 2025-02-02 - live NHHC page returns 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry 'Biddle III (DDG-5)', specification block + narrative paragraph
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: 'The third Biddle (DDG-5) was laid down on 18 May 1959 at Camden, N.J., by the New York Shipbuilding Corp.; launched on 4 June 1960; and commissioned on 5 May 1962, Cmdr. Paul Roth in command.' Specification block: displacement 4,500 (full load); length 437'0"; beam 47'0" (extreme); draft 15'0" (maximum); complement 354; speed 33.0 knots; armament 2 5-inch, Tartar, ASROC, 6 12.75-inch torpedo tubes; class Charles F. Adams. Records the ship renamed Claude V. Ricketts 'on 28 July 1968' - a typographical error; the correct year is 1964 (see gaps).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1959-1964
- Population
- New York Shipbuilding construction trades 1959-1962; crew 1962-1964 as Biddle (design complement 354)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents construction, specifications, and naming, not materials or asbestos content. The printed rename date '1968' conflicts with all other sources and with context (Adm. Ricketts died 6 July 1964; the mixed-manning experiment was underway summer 1964) - 1964 carried, variance documented in gaps. Live NHHC URL returns 404; Wayback capture cited.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-01
-
[2]NHHC DANFS page stub, Claude V. Ricketts (DDG-5) - 'History Pending' (NHHC, published 2015-06-30; Wayback capture 2016-03-04 - live NHHC page returns 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- NHHC DANFS page 'Claude V. Ricketts (DDG-5)', dates block
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Official NHHC record for this hull under its renamed identity: 'Commissioned 5 May 1962; Decommissioned 31 October 1989; Strike Date: 1 June 1990; Disposed of by scrapping on 8 November 2002.' No narrative DANFS history exists for this hull - the NHHC page carries 'History Pending' and NavSource's archive notes the ship 'was built too late to be covered by the DANFS project' beyond the Biddle III stub.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1962-2002
- Population
- Crew 1962-1989 (design complement 354)
- Limitations
- Confirms official commission/decommission/strike/disposal dates only; no service narrative, no materials or asbestos information. 'History Pending' status means no fuller official narrative is published.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-02
-
[3]Naval Vessel Register detail page, CLAUDE V. RICKETTS (DDG 5) (ex-BIDDLE) (Wayback capture 2011-01-27 of nvr.navy.mil) [other_primary]
- Locator
- NVR DDG5 detail page, identification and dates blocks
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NVR record for this hull: class DDG 2 (Charles F. Adams); builder NEW YORK SB CORP; award 03/28/1957; keel 05/18/1959; launch 06/04/1960; delivery 05/02/1962; commission 05/05/1962; decommission 10/31/1989; stricken 06/01/1990; status 'Disposed of by scrapping, dismantling' with status-change date 11/08/2002; overall length 437 ft; light displacement 3,982 tons; hull material 'Steel hull, aluminum superstructure'; UIC 04671; 27.5 years commission to decommission.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1957-2002
- Population
- Construction trades 1959-1962; crew 1962-1989; disposal workforce 1994-2002
- Limitations
- NVR documents registry dates, builder, hull construction material, and disposal outcome, not materials inventories or asbestos content. The 2011 capture post-dates disposal so reflects final registry state.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-03
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[4]NavSource Naval History, Destroyer Photo Index DD-955/DDG-5 USS Biddle / USS Claude V. Ricketts - operational/building data and disposal chain [other_primary]
- Locator
- NavSource page 'Operational and Building Data' and 'Fate' blocks
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- NavSource archive record for this hull: 'Originally classified as DD-955, Classification changed to DDG-5 April 23 1957.' Laid down by New York Shipbuilding 18 May 1959; launched 4 June 1960; commissioned 5 May 1962; renamed Claude V. Ricketts 28 July 1964; decommissioned 31 October 1989; stricken 1 June 1990. Disposal chain: moved to Navy Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility Philadelphia 3 November 1989; sold to NR Acquisition (Wilmington) under Bid #310-4313 Item #15 for $183,361.40; contract terminated 1 October 1996; repossessed 8 October 1996; removed 2 November 1996, arrived NISMF 5 November 1996 by Moran Towing; sold to Metro Machine Corp., Philadelphia, 18 December 2001 for $183,361.40; delivered 11 January 2002; scrapping complete 8 November 2002. Machinery: 70,000 shp geared turbines, 2 screws; 33 knots; crew 333-350.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1957-2002
- Population
- Disposal/scrapping workforce 1994-1996 (NR Acquisition/Wilmington Resources, Bethlehem Fairfield yard Baltimore) and 2002 (Metro Machine, Philadelphia)
- Limitations
- NavSource is a private photographic/historical archive (secondary aggregation, not a government publication); its disposal figures are corroborated by the NVR disposal date (11/08/2002) and by the partial-scrapping/repossession narrative in other secondary sources. Rename year 1964 contradicts the DANFS '1968' typo. No asbestos content.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-04
-
[5]USS Claude V. Ricketts (DDG-5) cruise-book scans and compiled service history, navysite.de (primary artifacts - official U.S. Navy cruise books: Mixed Manning Demonstration 1964-65, Mediterranean 1969 and 1971, Mediterranean/Middle East 1979-80, STANAVFORLANT 1981) + 1981 cruise-book ship's history as compiled in secondary sources [other_primary]
- Locator
- navysite.de DDG-5 index page + cruise-book scans; corroborating award list via U.S. Navy unit awards (awards.navy.mil, archived 2004-10-14)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Service history documented via the ship's own cruise books (primary Navy artifacts, scanned at navysite.de; referenced in secondary compilations as Fold3 U.S. Navy Cruise Books 1918-2009): as Biddle, Atlantic/Caribbean Second Fleet operations incl. pre-Cuban-Missile-Crisis activity 1962; first Mediterranean deployment late 1963 - March 1964; renamed Claude V. Ricketts 28 July 1964; NATO mixed-manning demonstration June 1964 - December 1965 (crew: 10 US officers + 164 US enlisted plus contingents from West Germany, Italy, Greece, UK, Netherlands, Turkey; Navy Unit Commendation awarded); Sixth Fleet deployments 1966-1973 with northern-European cruise July 1972; ten-month overhaul at Norfolk Naval Shipyard early 1974 - January 1975; rescue unit alongside USS Belknap (CG-26) after Belknap's collision with USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) night of 22 November 1975 - seven-hour firefighting effort amid exploding ammunition, Navy Unit Commendation; overhaul at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard September 1977 - October 1978; Middle East Force deployment September 1979 incl. 72 continuous days at sea during the Iran hostage crisis; Standing Naval Force Atlantic deployment January - June 1981; Lebanon operations late 1983 - early 1984; final Mediterranean deployment late 1987 - 29 March 1988; decommissioned Norfolk 31 October 1989.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1962-1989
- Population
- Crew 1962-1989 incl. multinational NATO complement 1964-65; Norfolk NSY and Philadelphia NSY overhaul trades 1974-75, 1977-78
- Limitations
- Cruise-book artifacts are primary but the page-level summary is a secondary compilation; the 1974-75 Norfolk NSY and 1977-78 Philadelphia NSY overhaul windows are documented events, while any asbestos scope within them is inference (no work-package or abatement record is public). The Belknap firefighting action is a documented exposure-relevant event (fire-damaged composite superstructure, burning ammunition) but no exposure documentation for Ricketts crew exists.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-05
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[6]Era inference built on: DANFS spec block (Charles F. Adams class; steam plant per NavSource machinery line - 70,000 shp geared turbines, 2 screws; secondary sources record 4 Foster-Wheeler 1,275-psi boilers) + Atlas shipyard dataset record 'new-york-shipbuilding' (yard-level asbestos products documented, tier 1: Pabco Six-Ply Super Caltemp block 15% chrysotile; Ehret 85% magnesia; Johns-Manville Transite panels 10-30%; asbestos gaskets, packing, asbestos-coated welding rods 5-15%; ebonized asbestos lumber; wire insulation 75-85% chrysotile; felt insulation 5-50%) + NARA RG19 Bureau of Ships 'General Information Books' archival lead for per-vessel material specifications [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS spec block; NavSource machinery line; shipyards.json record 'new-york-shipbuilding'; NARA RG19 GIB (archival lead, not retrieved)
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/class inference: a Charles F. Adams-class guided missile destroyer built 1959-1962 at New York Shipbuilding with a high-pressure four-boiler geared-turbine steam plant would have carried era-standard asbestos applications - boiler casing and turbine insulation, steam-line lagging, gaskets and packing, fireproofing, and deck/bulkhead coverings. Builder-yard asbestos product documentation exists at yard level (not hull level): New York Shipbuilding's Atlas record documents named ACM product lines in use at the yard. NARA RG19 'General Information Books' per-vessel material specifications are the archival lead for hull-level specs.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1959-2002
- Population
- New York Shipbuilding construction trades 1959-1962; crew 1962-1989
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - no hull-specific insulation survey, material list, or work package located for DD-955/DDG-5. Names era-typical applications and yard-documented product lines, not confirmed installed materials aboard this hull. No quantity. Does not establish individual exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-06
-
[7]Australian Department of Veterans' Affairs, CLIK Compensation & Support Policy Library 4.4.11 'Claims relating to asbestos exposure while serving on certain RAN vessels' - Repatriation and Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission agreed vessel list (Department of Defence supplied) [other_primary]
- Locator
- CLIK policy page 4.4.11, Defence-supplied vessel list (entries: HMAS Perth II 1965-1999; HMAS Hobart II 1965-2000)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Official foreign-government asbestos acknowledgment at class level: the Australian DVA/RMRCC agreed list records RAN ships 'on board which members may have been exposed to asbestos during the relevant period' - the list is Defence-supplied and obviates case-by-case exposure confirmation for listed vessels. The list includes HMAS Perth II (1965-1999) and HMAS Hobart II (1965-2000), the Perth-class DDGs built in the United States (Defoe Shipbuilding, Bay City, MI) as slight variants of the Charles F. Adams design - the same class as this hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1965-2000
- Population
- RAN Perth-class crews 1965-2000 (corroborative class population)
- Limitations
- Class-level corroboration only: the DVA list covers Australian-flagged ships, not this U.S. Navy hull, and is a claims-administration policy rather than an engineering survey; it supports the class/era inference for DDG-5 but establishes nothing ship-specific. Perth-class machinery differed in detail (GE turbines, 1,200-psi boilers).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-07
-
[8]OSHA Directive CPL 02-00-136, National Emphasis Program on Shipbreaking (implements OSHA-DOD[Navy/DLA-DRMS]-DOT[MARAD]-EPA interagency MOA requiring programmed inspections of Navy/MARAD shipbreaking operations) [other_primary]
- Locator
- OSHA CPL 02-00-136 sections: MOA description and annual-inspection requirement; contractor description via usspreble.org (secondary, not carried as evidence)
- Finding type
- regulatory
- Finding
- Regulatory context for the disposal period: this hull's final dismantling by Metro Machine Corp. at Philadelphia (delivered January 2002, scrapping completed 8 November 2002) fell within the era of OSHA's shipbreaking emphasis program, under which each Navy vessel undergoing shipbreaking 'must be inspected annually' for workplace hazards. The program exists because shipbreaking hazards include asbestos-containing materials; Metro Machine's NAVSEA contract regime for these demolitions treated asbestos insulation as a managed waste stream (contractor-described on a sister demolition in the same facility and period).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2001-2002 (disposal); directive current as issued
- Population
- Metro Machine shipbreaking workforce, Philadelphia, 2001-2002
- Limitations
- Program-level context: the directive establishes an inspection regime for Navy/MARAD scrapping generally; it does not name this hull, does not document ACM quantities aboard, and the Metro Machine waste-stream description comes from a contractor email about USS Preble (DDG-46) - a different hull at the same facility under the same NAVSEA regime. No hull-specific hazmat manifest or OSHA inspection file for DDG-5 was located.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-08
-
[9]Redman v. A.W. Chesterton Company et al., No. 3:08-cv-03013-JSW (N.D. Cal.), Notice of Removal, ECF No. 1 (filed 2008-06-18) with embedded state-court 'Complaint for Survival / Wrongful Death and Loss of Consortium - Asbestos' (San Francisco County Superior Court CGC-08-274617) [court_record]
- Locator
- Redman v. A.W. Chesterton, ECF No. 1, embedded complaint pp. 10-11 (Exhibit A jobsite table, NNSY block); complaint para. alleging pipefitter/steamfitter exposure to 'asbestos-containing thermal insulation materials'
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Qualifying asbestos litigation naming this hull (pleading stage): the complaint in Redman v. A.W. Chesterton alleges decedent Ronald Redman 'was exposed to asbestos and asbestos-containing thermal insulation materials while present at Decedent's jobsites' while working as a pipefitter and steamfitter; the complaint's Exhibit A jobsite table lists 'USS CLAUDE V RICKETTS' (two rows) among the jobsites, with employer shown as Norfolk Naval Shipyard in a 1/1/1974 - 12/31/1984 exposure window. The hull spent a documented ten-month overhaul at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in 1974 - January 1975, inside that window. Decedent was diagnosed with mesothelioma October 2007 and died of asbestos-related disease; the case was removed to the N.D. Cal. and terminated 2009-02-02.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1974-1984 (alleged exposure window); 2008-2009 (litigation)
- Population
- Ronald Redman (pipefitter/steamfitter; Newport News Shipbuilding 1958-1974 era, Norfolk Naval Shipyard ~1974-1984); mesothelioma dx Oct 2007
- Limitations
- Pleading-stage allegation only - the complaint's jobsite list is an allegation, not an adjudicated finding; it does not establish that exposure occurred aboard this hull, does not identify which products aboard were asbestos-containing, and does not establish causation or legal eligibility. The OCR'd exhibit is poorly aligned (jobsite/employer/date columns flatten); attribution of the Ricketts rows to the 1974-1984 NNSY window is read from column position and corroborated by the ship's documented 1974-75 NNSY overhaul. No merits disposition located (terminated 2009-02-02).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-09
-
[10]CourtListener API v4 sweep 2026-09-28 (all requests via authenticated fleet helper cl-auth-search.py): "USS Biddle" type=o = 1 opinion; "USS Biddle" type=r = 1 RECAP docket; "Claude V. Ricketts" type=o = 0; "Claude V. Ricketts" type=r = 1 RECAP docket (Redman, resolved - see ev-09); "DD-955" type=o = 0; "DDG-5" type=o = 0; "DDG-5" type=r = 12 dockets (11 unrelated collisions + Kraus v. Alcatel-Lucent, resolved as other litigation - see ledger) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener search API v4 results; Sullivan docket 7744736; Redman docket 4174328
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Litigation sweep results: "USS Biddle" opinions returned one hit, Moran Towing & Transp. Co. v. United States, 80 F. Supp. 623 (S.D.N.Y. 1948) - a 1941 tug/PC-451 collision admiralty matter; name collision (predates this hull; may reference DD-151 if a vessel at all), non-asbestos. "USS Biddle" RECAP dockets returned one hit, Sullivan v. A.W. Chesterton Inc., 2:18-cv-03622 (E.D. Pa., asbestos P.I., removed from Philadelphia CCP by Bath Iron Works and Huntington Ingalls) - 'USS Biddle' matched indexed docket text but the hull attribution is AMBIGUOUS: this name was borne by both DDG-5 (1962-1964) and DLG-34/CG-34 (1967-1993); the removing defendant (Bath Iron Works, builder of DLG-34) suggests the later hull, and the reference could not be resolved to this hull from retrievable text. "Claude V. Ricketts" opinions = zero; dockets = Redman (qualifying, ev-09). "DD-955" and "DDG-5" opinion searches = zero. "DDG-5" RECAP dockets = 12 hits, of which 11 are obvious string collisions (tax, securities, patent, bankruptcy, contract, habeas, pharma MDL) and one is an asbestos docket - Kraus v. Alcatel-Lucent, 2:18-cv-02119 (E.D. Pa.) - resolved by OCR of its only matching document (ECF 637, a 186-page exhibit bundle in plaintiff's opposition to Lockheed Martin's summary-judgment motion): the plaintiff served aboard USS Cambria (APA-36) and the 'DDG-5' string occurs inside bundled technical/fleet documentation (1979 Navy letter to GAO on shipboard asbestos, Westinghouse asbestos spec sheets, radar-equipment exhibits) - the hull is not alleged as the plaintiff's exposure site. Classified other litigation, not qualifying.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28 (sweep date)
- Limitations
- The Sullivan hit is not carried as qualifying: 'USS Biddle' in indexed docket text cannot be attributed to this hull over DLG-34/CG-34, and even if it could, a complaint's vessel list is a pleading allegation, not a finding. The Redman naming is verified to this hull by the unique 'Claude V Ricketts' name. Absence of further located litigation does not prove absence of exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-10
-
[11]Batch-3877 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS pages via Wayback; NVR via Wayback; NavSource; navysite.de cruise-book archive; Australian DVA CLIK; OSHA shipbreaking directive; CourtListener exact-name and hull sweeps; Atlas shipyards.json [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-biddle-dd955-01 through -10
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Aside from the Redman pleading (ev-09), no ship-specific asbestos record was located: no asbestos survey, abatement contract, hazmat manifest, environmental record, or government finding naming DD-955/DDG-5 under either the Biddle or Claude V. Ricketts name in the public sources searched (see search_ledger). Ship-specific asbestos documentation is therefore unknown except at pleading-allegation stage.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - the class/era inference (1959-62 steam DDG, documented builder-yard asbestos products) is strong context but is not a hull-level finding. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-biddle-dd955-11