Evidence
7 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-7).
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[1]research packet kq-packet.md (6 sources cited) [nhhc_danfs]
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- Identity packet verdict: VERIFIED — real identity: USS Haas
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Evidence ID
- uss-haas-de424-pkt-kq-packet-md
-
[2]DANFS Vol. III (G-K, 1968), 'Haas' entry, Naval History Division/GPO - text verified against the Internet Archive scan of the print edition (live NHHC page 404; HyperWar/ibiblio transcription also consulted) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS Vol. III, 'Haas' entry (G-K section); archive.org djvu text lines ~35089-35154; HyperWar transcription https://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/dafs/DE/de424.html
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: (DE-424; dp. 1,350; l. 306'; b. 36'8"; dr. 9'5"; s. 24 k.; cpl. 186; a. 2 5", 4 40mm., 20mm., 3 21" tt., 2 dct., 8 dcp., 1 dcp. (hh.); cl. John C. Butler). Named for Chief Machinist John William Haas (b. 14 June 1907, Sioux City, Iowa), Torpedo Squadron 3 pilot killed 4 June 1942 at Midway, posthumous Navy Cross. Launched 20 March 1944 by Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Tex.; sponsored by Mrs. Gladys Winifred Haas, the namesake's widow; commissioned 2 August 1944, Lt. Comdr. A. M. White, USNR. Caribbean shakedown, East Coast escort duty; Manus 15 January 1945 via Panama Canal, Galapagos, Espiritu Santo; Leyte 27 January; escort/patrol Philippines; shore bombardment and fire support for assault landings at Lubang Island 1 March and Romblon and Simara Islands 10-12 March (print scan; HyperWar transcription reads '1-12 March'); convoy escort Okinawa-Leyte July, Ulithi-Manila early August; postwar escort/dispatch ship with China coast trips; departed Hong Kong 5 January 1946 for San Diego, arriving 1 February; decommissioned San Diego 31 May 1946. Recommissioned San Diego 19 May 1951; reported to 8th Naval District, New Orleans, 18 September as reserve training ship; Gulf/Caribbean cruises, ~900 reservists trained annually. Entered Charleston Navy Yard 7 November 1957; decommissioned there 24 January 1958; Atlantic Reserve Fleet. DANFS online bracketed addendum: struck from the Navy list 1 July 1966, sold 6 September 1967.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1967
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades 1944; wartime and reserve-era crews (design complement 186)
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. Print edition carries no keel-laying date (NavSource supplies 23 February 1944 - separate row). Print text's 'scrapped in December 1966' precedes the documented 6 September 1967 sale - carried in gaps. The struck/sold dates come from the online addendum (absent from the 1968 print), consistent with NavSource.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-haas-de424-01
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[3]NavSource Online Destroyer Escort Photo Archive, USS Haas (DE 424) building/operational data, specifications block, and commanding-officer table (accessed via Wayback Machine capture 2025-05-13; live navsource.org not reachable this session) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navsource.org/archives/06/424.htm - building/operational data block, specs, CO table (Wayback 2025-05-13 capture)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NavSource record for this hull: keel laid 23 February 1944 by Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Tex.; launched and christened 20 March 1944 (sponsor Mrs. Gladys Winifred Haas); commissioned 2 August 1944, Lcdr. A. M. White USNR; decommissioned San Diego 31 May 1946 after 1 year 10 months of service and 69,737 miles steamed; inactivation completed 18 November 1946, assigned to Submarine Group Two, San Diego Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet; recommissioned San Diego 19 May 1951; assigned to Naval Reserve Training, 8th Naval District, New Orleans; decommissioned Charleston, S.C. 24 January 1958 after 6 years 8 months; struck from the NVR 1 July 1966 (8 years 6 months total); sold for scrapping 6 September 1967. Specifications: WGT geared-turbine type, 1,350 t light / 1,745 t full, 306' oa, 2 'D' Express boilers, 2 geared turbines, 12,000 shp, 24 kt, range 6,000 nm at 12 kt, complement 14/201. Commanding officers: White (Aug-Sep 1944), Rector (Sep 1944-Dec 1945), Hadaway (Dec 1945-1946), Lt.(jg) Larson (decomm. CO). Page links the ship-submitted official war history held by NHHC (scan 06424wh.jpg).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1967
- Population
- Construction trades 1944; USN crew 1944-46; reserve-training era crew and reservist trainees 1951-58
- Limitations
- Secondary compilation (volunteer photo archive) - the keel date, mileage figure, inactivation date, and NVR strike/sale dates are not in DANFS and rest on NavSource. A photo caption reading '25 March 1944 underway off the Boston Navy Yard' is impossible for a ship commissioned August 1944 (likely a mislabeled year); the caption is not carried. Ribbon art shows Asiatic-Pacific Campaign and Philippine Liberation among awards but no battle-star count.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-haas-de424-02
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[4]DANFS specifications block (John C. Butler class; 24 kt) + BuShips Ships' Data 1945 Vol. 1 design-group 6 table (2 'D' express boilers 435 psi/750F, 12,000 shp, accommodations 15/207; shipscribe.com scan) + navypedia WGT machinery block map (DE339-372, 402-424: 2 Westinghouse geared steam turbines, 2 Combustion Engineering boilers) + Atlas shipyard dataset record 'charleston-naval-shipyard' (tier 2 asbestos-era yard) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DANFS specifications block; navypedia us_de_tev_wgt.htm machinery table (DE-424 row: yard no. 97, Brown SB Houston); SDB1945v1 pp. 234-235 design-group 6; shipyards.json record 'charleston-naval-shipyard'
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era/design inference: a WGT-design destroyer escort built Feb-Aug 1944 with a full steam plant - 2 'D' express boilers (Combustion Engineering per the navypedia block map for the DE-402-424 block; 435 psi/750F per BuShips Ships' Data 1945) feeding 2 Westinghouse geared turbines, 12,000 shp - would have carried the peak-era asbestos applications of a steam ship: fireroom and boiler external insulation, steam-line lagging between fireroom and engine room, valve and flange gaskets, machinery packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings. Builder Brown Shipbuilding Co. (Houston) is not a yard in the Atlas dataset, so no yard-level industrial record can be attached to construction. The 7 November 1957-24 January 1958 inactivation at Charleston Navy Yard was performed at a documented tier-2 asbestos-era yard.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 1944-1966
- Population
- Brown Shipbuilding construction trades 1944; Charleston Navy Yard workers Nov 1957-Jan 1958; USN crew 1944-58
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No materials schedule, General Information Book, or survey ties these applications to DE-424. The boiler-maker attribution (Combustion Engineering) rests on navypedia's design-group block map, a secondary compilation unverified against contract documents. Does not quantify material or establish any individual's exposure.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-haas-de424-03
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[5]Laurent v. New Orleans City, No. 2:14-cv-02022-CJB-MBN (E.D. La.), Order & Reasons denying plaintiff's motion to remand, ECF No. 32 (Oct. 23, 2014, Barbier, J.) - RECAP document with OCR text; suitNature 'P.I. : Asbestos'; CourtListener docket 5231505 [court_record]
- Locator
- E.D. La. 2:14-cv-02022, ECF No. 32 pp.1-2 (decedent's vessel list incl. USS HAAS boiler rooms; GE/CBS asbestos-turbine allegation), pp.6-7 (Horne affidavit recital), pp.9-10 (removal proper; remand denied)
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Published federal order names this hull: in a wrongful-death and survival action filed in Orleans Parish Civil District Court 24 July 2014, plaintiff Scott Laurent alleged his father, decedent Frederick J. Laurent - a member of the U.S. Naval Reserve - 'worked aboard a number of naval vessels, including the USS KENNETH M. WILLETT, the USS HAAS, and the USS WOODSON in the boiler rooms' (Order & Reasons, ECF No. 32 p.1, citing Rec. Doc. 28-1 p.5), and that defendants GE and CBS (formerly Westinghouse) 'manufactured and distributed to the Navy asbestos-containing turbines and equipment, to which Decedent was exposed while working aboard the aforementioned naval vessels,' plus failure to warn (Rec. Doc. 1-1 p.7). The court denied remand, holding removal proper under the federal-officer removal statute 28 U.S.C. 1442(a)(1) after reciting CBS's Horne affidavit (Rear Adm. Roger B. Horne Jr., Rec. Doc. 8 pp.3-5): Navy design specifications called for the use of asbestos in CBS/Westinghouse turbines, Navy officers were resident at the plant overseeing compliance, and the Navy reserved final authority over warnings. A reservist's boiler-room service aboard this hull is consistent with Haas's documented 1951-1958 assignment as the 8th Naval District Naval Reserve training ship at New Orleans - the same district and role as the two sister Butler-class DEs named alongside her (Willett DE-354 NRT New Orleans 1951-1959; Woodson DE-359 NRT New Orleans 1957-1962). Filed (federal) 4 Sep 2014; terminated 29 Oct 2015.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- reservist service aboard the named DEs (consistent with Haas's 1951-1958 New Orleans NRT assignment); litigation 2014-2015
- Population
- Frederick J. Laurent (USNR member, boiler-room work aboard USS Haas, USS Kenneth M. Willett DE-354, USS Woodson DE-359; mesothelioma decedent); Naval Reserve trainees/cadre at New Orleans
- Limitations
- PLEADING-STAGE ALLEGATION recited in a removal/remand order - the lowest rung of the litigation-stage discipline. The court decided only that federal-officer removal was proper; the vessel list is recited from plaintiff's materials (Rec. Doc. 28-1, Rec. Doc. 1-1), not adjudicated - no trial finding on exposure or causation was located (post-removal docket reviewed, 59 entries: the 2015-02-25 order granted BMW/Daimler/VW summary judgment and the 2015-05-27 order granted the City of New Orleans' 12(b)(6) dismissal of the wrongful-death claim - both non-vessel defendants; no order adjudicates the USS Haas exposure allegation; case terminated 2015-10-29). The Horne affidavit is defendant evidence recited to justify removal, not adopted fact; it describes Navy asbestos specifications for CBS/Westinghouse turbines generally. The order does not identify which specific products aboard this hull were asbestos-containing, does not quantify exposure, and does not establish legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-haas-de424-04
-
[6]CourtListener API v4 searches (authenticated, fleet-paced via cl-auth-search.py/cl-patient-search.py): '"USS Haas"' type=o (0 hits); '"USS Haas"' type=r (1 docket - qualifying); '"DE-424"' type=o (10 hits, all collisions); '"DE-424"' type=r (141 hits, all collisions); '"Haas" asbestos' type=o (284 hits, page-1 all collisions) [court_record]
- Locator
- CourtListener search endpoint v4; per-query results and hit classifications in this row and search_ledger sl-uss-haas-de424-10 through -15
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener sweep for this hull (executed 2026-09-28): '"USS Haas"' opinions (type=o) = 0 hits - no reporter-indexed opinion names the vessel. '"USS Haas"' RECAP dockets (type=r) = 1 hit - Laurent v. New Orleans City, 2:14-cv-02022 (E.D. La.), 'P.I.: Asbestos' removal docket - QUALIFYING (see ev-uss-haas-de424-04). '"DE-424"' opinions (type=o) = 10 hits, all identifier collisions: Puerto Rico appellate Spanish-text 'de ... 424' matches, federal docket-entry cites '(DE 382/385)' pattern in Neumont v. Monroe County (S.D. Fla.), and reporter page marker '*424' in United States v. Straughan (8th Cir. 1972) - none asbestos or vessel related. '"DE-424"' RECAP dockets (type=r) = 141 hits, all identifier collisions - 'DE-424'/'DE 424' matches RECAP docket-entry-number citations in unrelated dockets (e.g. '(See DE 424)' in U.S. v. Trump, '(DE 424)' motion cites in Pendlebury v. Starbucks); the two asbestos-tagged dockets in the set (Miller v. 3M Co., E.D.N.C. 2012; U.S. v. Bellamy, E.D.N.C. 1999) carry no vessel-name context in the returned payload and matched on entry-cite text - vessel references in asbestos pleadings use 'USS <name>' form and the exact-name docket search returns Laurent alone. '"Haas" asbestos' opinions (type=o) = 284 hits; page-1 review shows surname/entity collisions only (Rohm & Haas Co. products cases, Haas surname parties incl. La. appeals asbestos-docket entries, Baron & Budd firm references, MDL committee disputes) - no vessel hit. Classification net: ONE qualifying asbestos-litigation docket names this hull (Laurent, pleading-stage); no published opinion; no second hull named Haas exists to collide (single DANFS entry).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- litigation index through 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Sweep coverage, not a merits finding: type=o supports 'no published opinion names this hull'; type=r surfaced the one qualifying docket. Pleadings never filed into RECAP-indexed federal dockets (state-court complaints, MDL-875 claimant lists not naming the hull in searchable text) would not surface. '"Haas" asbestos' review is page-1 (20 of 284); deeper pages are dominated by the same collision classes and not exhausted. The '"DE-424"' type=r match text is not fully returned in the search payload, so the two asbestos-tagged collision dockets are classified on absence of vessel-name context plus the exact-name result, not on inspected match text.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-haas-de424-05
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[7]Batch-4326 search ledger (this record): DANFS GPO print scan (archive.org) + HyperWar transcription; NavSource (via Wayback); navypedia WGT design table; BuShips Ships' Data 1945; Atlas shipyard dataset; CourtListener exact-name and hull-number sweeps [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-haas-de424-01 through sl-uss-haas-de424-15 (see search_ledger)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos-materials record located outside litigation: no hull ACM survey, no abatement contract, no materials inventory, and no hazmat or pre-disposal environmental disclosure names DE-424 in the sources searched (see search_ledger). Litigation naming the hull DOES exist (ev-uss-haas-de424-04: Laurent v. New Orleans City) as a pleading-stage exposure allegation recited in a published removal order - no adjudicated exposure or causation finding was located. The hull was stricken 1966 and sold for scrapping 1967 - disposal predates modern survey/abatement-disclosure practice, so none is expected to exist; whatever insulation remained aboard was scrapped with the hull.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-28
- Study period
- 2026-09-28
- Limitations
- Absence of a located materials record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a 1944 steam destroyer escort is era-consistent with asbestos insulation, and the Laurent allegation (pleading-stage, unadjudicated) is the only ship-specific pointer. Does not establish that asbestos is or was present aboard, does not characterize the scrapping yard's handling of any insulation, and does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility. NARA RG 19 construction records / any DE-424 General Information Book and the NHHC-held ship-submitted war history remain unsurveyed archival leads.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-haas-de424-06