USS Illusive (AM-448)

Evidence

10 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-10).

1. [1]DANFS, 'Illusive' - verbatim text via Wayback capture (2025-01-20) of the official NHHC page; live URL returns 404 as of 2026-09-22 [nhhc_danfs]

   Locator

   Wayback capture 2025-01-20 19:42:47 of history.navy.mil DANFS 'Illusive'; published 2015-07-21

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   DANFS data line: (AM-448: dp. 630; l. 172'; b. 36'; dr. 10'; s. 16 k.; cpl. 72; a. 1 40mm.; cl. Agile). Entry disambiguates two hulls of the name: Illusive (AM-243), Admirable class, canceled 6 June 1944 while under construction by Tampa Shipbuilding Co.; AM-448 was launched by Martinolich Shipbuilding Co., San Diego, Calif., 12 July 1952, sponsored by Mrs. Vito Marino, and commissioned 14 November 1953, Lt. Comdr. J. E. Ruzic in command. Service: shakedown and training out of Long Beach 1954; 'Long Beach shipyard' for extensive modifications October 1954-February 1955; reclassified 'MSO-148' [sic - MSO-448 per NVR/NavSource] 7 February 1955; November 1956 yard period to replace her engines with experimental Packard models, engineering-evaluation trials to May 1957; first Far East deployment 1 August 1957-15 February 1958 (7th Fleet operations; joint exercises with Japanese naval units 6-9 October and the Chinese Nationalist Navy 15-17 December 1957); second WestPac 8 January-19 July 1960 (maneuvers off Japan, the Philippines, Okinawa); sailed 24 August 1961 (Philippines, Guam, Formosa; Sattahib, Thailand 25 November; Bangkok and Saigon in December; trained South Vietnamese officers and men) returning for Long Beach 3 March 1962; August 1963 far Pacific deployment via Sasebo 23 September, 7th Fleet training with Korean, Nationalist Chinese, and Japanese minesweepers, return 7 March 1964 for yard overhaul and refresher training; departed 13 August 1965 for Hawaii, the Marshalls, the Marianas, and the Philippines, standing out of Subic Bay 2 October 1965 for Market Time patrol off Vietnam (mother ship for Swift boats, gunfire support, hydrographic survey, interception patrol) until February 1966, reaching Long Beach 28 April; West Coast operations for the remainder of 1966 and into 1967, where the narrative ends.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1951-1967 (narrative coverage)

   Population

   Crew (~72 per DANFS data line)

   Limitations

   Narrative coverage ends 1966-67 - the 1970 decommissioning, 1972 recommissioning, 1987-88 Persian Gulf service, and 1990 final decommissioning are undocumented in this source. Contains no asbestos, insulation, or materials information. Omits the laid-down date. The printed 'MSO-148' is a typographical error for MSO-448 (per NVR and NavSource) - flagged in gaps, not silently corrected. The 'cl. Agile' class tag conflicts with NVR's MSO 422 (Aggressive) class key - documented disagreement carried in gaps. Live NHHC page 404s; Wayback capture of the official page cited.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-01

2. [2]Naval Vessel Register (NAVSEA/NAVSHIPSO), ship detail page ILLUSIVE (MSO 448) ex-AM 448, UIC 07978 - Wayback capture 2024-08-09; page last updated 09/05/2001 [other_primary]

   Locator

   Wayback capture 2024-08-09 07:56:43; NVR page fields: Vessel Status / Milestone Dates / Physical Characteristics / Program Characteristics

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NVR lists: type MINESWEEPER,OCEAN; class MSO 422; status 'Disposed of, by Navy Sale' with status-changed date 02/09/1993; stricken 06/01/1990; decommissioned 03/30/1990; launched 07/12/1952; commission 11/14/1953; propulsion type Diesel; disposal custodian 'Schools, Organizations and Private Enterprises'. 37.0 years commission to decommission as computed by NVR.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   Register entries as of 2001-09-05

   Limitations

   Official register record with several blank fields (keel date, builder, hull material, dimensions). NVR milestone fields carry only the final decommissioning - the 1970 decommissioning and 1972 recommissioning documented by NavSource do not appear. Contains no asbestos information; documents disposal pathway only.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-02

3. [3]NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive, Illusive (MSO 448) ex-AM-448 page, incl. official U.S. Navy photo captions DN-ST-88-01143, DN-SN-88001105, DN-SC-88-03287, DNSC9402523 and NARA identifier 6933091 [other_primary]

   Locator

   navsource.net/archives/11/02448.htm - 'Aggressive Class Minesweeper' chronology block, Specifications block, CO table, photo-caption table

   Finding type

   vessel_history

   Finding

   NavSource records: laid down 23 October 1951 by Martinolich Shipbuilding Co., San Diego, CA (DANFS omits the keel date and the NVR keel field is blank); decommissioned 30 November 1970; recommissioned 3 February 1972; decommissioned 30 March 1990; struck 1 June 1990; 'sold for scrap 9 February 1993 by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service to Sea Witch Salvage of Baltimore, MD, for $12,000.' Specifications: 775 t., 172', beam 35', draft 12', 14 kts, complement 78; armament one 40mm mount and two .50 cal machine guns (final configuration: one twin 20mm bow mount, two .50 cal); propulsion four Packard ID1700 diesel engines later replaced by four Waukesha Motors Co. diesels, two shafts, controllable-pitch propellers. Official USN photo captions document the 1987 Persian Gulf deployment: Grapple (ARS-53) towed Inflict (MSO-456), Fearless (MSO-442), and Illusive from Little Creek, Va., departing 6 September 1987 via the Suez Canal, arriving Gulf of Oman 2 November 1987 - at the time the longest distance three ships were towed by one vessel (DN-ST-88-01143); Illusive departing Rota, Spain, 1 September 1987 (DN-SN-88001105); off Sitrah, Bahrain, 26 December 1987 (DN-SC-88-03287); the hulk at Sea Witch Marine Salvage, Lambert Point, Baltimore, 20 September 1993 and 13 July 1994 moored alongside Coral Sea (CV-43), also being scrapped (DNSC9402523). Commanding-officer table lists 23 officers through 30 March 1990.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1951-1994

   Population

   Shipyard workers (Martinolich, San Diego, 1951-52); crew; Seawitch breaking site (1993-94)

   Limitations

   Secondary compilation of official Navy data, not itself a government record; used for details absent from DANFS/NVR (keel date, two-phase commission record, disposal buyer/price, engine replacement, CO list). The disposal-buyer attribution conflicts with the Ellis trial record, which shows Illusive arriving at the Seawitch site 'from the primary contractor, Camden Iron and Metal' in May 1993 with Seawitch as breaking subcontractor - NavSource's 'sold to Sea Witch Salvage for $12,000' likely misattributes the subcontractor as the DRMS buyer; both framings logged and the conflict carried in gaps. Complement 78, beam 35', and 775 t differ from DANFS figures (72; 36'; 630 t). A contributed photo caption dating a 'launch' at Seattle Shipbuilding and Dry Docking Co., 14 February 1953, conflicts with the documented 12 July 1952 San Diego launch - treated as misattributed, not carried.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-03

4. [4]United States v. Ellis, No. 98-4150 (4th Cir. Feb. 22, 1999) (unpublished per curiam; table disposition at 172 F.3d 864), affirming D. Md. No. CR-96-361-WMN (Nickerson, J.) - official slip PDF, ca4.uscourts.gov [court_record]

   Locator

   Opinion Part I (DRMS purchases, IFB disclosures, Illusive arrival/abatement failure), Part II.A (counts one-two text and jury-instruction issue), disposition (affirmed); D. Md. verdict 30 May 1997, sentencing 13 Feb 1998

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   Affirmed federal criminal convictions documenting asbestos aboard this hull at disposal. The opinion recites: Seawitch Salvage entered subcontracts for the breaking of USS Illusive, which 'arrived from the primary contractor, Camden Iron and Metal, in May of 1993'; the DRMS invitations for bids 'clearly indicated that several compartments on each of the four decommissioned ships contained asbestos' (Inflict, Fearless, Illusive, Coral Sea), and 'the Navy marked each asbestos-containing compartment with a large warning sign' before sale; Camden Iron and Metal informed DRMS that Ellis would be responsible for asbestos abatement, but 'Ellis did not file the required NESHAP notice and no asbestos abatement occurred prior to the breaking of the Illusive.' Counts one and two of the seven-count indictment are Illusive-specific: count one charged failure to file the Clean Air Act notice of intent to 'demolish, strip, and remove friable asbestos from a minesweeper, formerly known as the U.S.S. Illusive' (42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(2) and 18 U.S.C. § 2); count two charged improper removal and disposal of friable asbestos from the Illusive (§ 7413(c)(1) and § 2). After an eleven-day trial the jury convicted on all seven counts 30 May 1997; the Fourth Circuit affirmed 22 February 1999. EPA's August 1994 site inspection investigated whether 'the asbestos from the Inflict, Fearless, and Illusive had been properly abated' and found apparent asbestos-containing debris in large piles exposed to the elements; nine of twelve October 1994 search-warrant debris samples exceeded 1% asbestos.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1993-1999

   Population

   Seawitch Salvage breaking workers (unlicensed, without protective equipment per EPA), Baltimore, 1993-1995

   Limitations

   Unpublished per curiam Table disposition (172 F.3d 864) - non-precedential under 4th Cir. practice; cited for the adjudicated factual record, not as precedent. On appeal the jury instructions on counts one-three used the broader 'regulated asbestos containing material' definition rather than the indictment's 'friable asbestos' - the court held the error invited by the defense and alternatively a variance, not a constructive amendment; convictions affirmed in all respects. The record establishes asbestos-containing compartments aboard at sale and improper removal during 1993-95 breaking; it does not quantify material aboard, does not address in-service or crew exposure (1953-1990), and adjudicates environmental crimes, not any individual injury or civil liability. CourtListener API was rate-limited this session (HTTP 429, ~6.8h reset); the official ca4.uscourts.gov PDF was consulted directly.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-04

5. [5]U.S. EPA press releases: 'Maryland Company and President Convicted' (1997-06-06) and 'Maryland Company and Owner Sentenced for Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act Violations' (1998-02-20) [other_primary]

   Locator

   EPA newsroom archive, epa.gov: .../9abdca2a48017083852564ae005108a4.html (1997-06-06, R-89) and .../b95598b8f6251e70852565b100712b1f.html (1998-02-20, R-22), both live 2026-09-22

   Finding type

   regulatory

   Finding

   EPA's official enforcement account: Seawitch Salvage and owner/president Kerry L. Ellis Sr. were convicted on seven felony counts (30 May 1997, U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, Baltimore) - Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Rivers and Harbors Act, and false statement to a federal agency - 'committed while Seawitch was executing a contract with the U.S. Navy to demolish and scrap two vessels, the U.S.S. Illusive, a minesweeper, and the U.S.S. Coral Sea, an aircraft carrier.' The contract required that asbestos and other hazardous materials be properly removed before dismantling; 'Between May 1993 and September 1995, Ellis and Seawitch directed their employees to remove material which contained asbestos from the ships,' though neither Ellis nor Seawitch was licensed for asbestos abatement and removal, and 'workers were exposed to asbestos without protective equipment.' Sentencing (13 February 1998): Ellis 30 months' imprisonment, three years' supervised release, $50,000 fine; Seawitch five years' probation, $50,000 fine. Investigation by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service / Baltimore Environmental Crimes Task Force, EPA Region 3 Environmental Services Division, and EPA's National Enforcement Investigations Center.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1993-1998

   Population

   Seawitch Salvage breaking workers (unlicensed, without protective equipment), Baltimore, 1993-1995

   Limitations

   Agency press releases - the prosecuting regulator's account of its own enforcement action, consistent with the affirmed convictions but not itself an adjudication. 'Workers were exposed' is the regulator's characterization of the violation, not a medical or dose finding; individual exposure quantities and outcomes not stated. The releases describe the underlying Navy contract as covering 'the U.S.S. Illusive... and the U.S.S. Coral Sea' without allocating counts per hull; the Illusive-specific count allocation (counts one and two) comes from the appellate record (ev-uss-illusive-am448-04).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-05

6. [6]N.R. Acquisition Corp. v. United States, 52 Fed. Cl. 490 (2002), No. 97-338 C (Court of Federal Claims) - corroborating recital of the Ellis criminal record [court_record]

   Locator

   52 Fed. Cl. 490, 494-96 (facts; Seawitch indictment recital); CourtListener opinion 6767710

   Finding type

   litigation_documented

   Finding

   Published Court of Federal Claims opinion on the DRMS scrapping contracts recites the procedural record: Ellis and Seawitch were indicted by a federal grand jury (D. Md.) on 24 September 1996, 'prosecuted and found guilty of all charges,' Ellis sentenced to a 30-month prison term and $50,000 fine, Seawitch to five years' probation and $50,000; final judgment entered 17 February 1998; and the convictions 'were affirmed by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on February 22, 1999. United States v. Ellis, 172 F.3d 864 (4th Cir.1999) (Table) (per curiam).' The opinion's recital of the DRMS invitations for bids states they 'clearly indicated that several compartments on each of the four decommissioned ships contained asbestos' - the four being Inflict, Fearless, Illusive, and Coral Sea per the Ellis trial record.

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   supporting

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1993-2002

   Population

   DRMS surplus-vessel purchasers and shipbreaking workers, Baltimore, 1993-1995

   Limitations

   The case adjudicates N.R. Acquisition Corp.'s Coral Sea contract dispute, not Illusive's own sale file - carried for its published corroborating recital of the Ellis criminal record, the 172 F.3d 864 (Table) citation, and the four-ship IFB asbestos-disclosure practice covering this hull. Canonical CourtListener page verified in Batch 228 (uss-coral-sea-cv43); CourtListener API and HTML opinion fetches were unavailable this session (API HTTP 429; HTML body empty), so the recital was cross-checked via the exa.ai aggregator excerpt - flagged, not silently relied on.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-06

7. [7]U.S. Navy / DoD photography carried in NavSource file 11/02448: DN-ST-88-01143, DN-SN-88001105, DN-SN-88-01073, DN-SN-88-01078, DN-SC-88-03287 (1987-88 Persian Gulf); DNSC9402523 (1994 Baltimore hulk); BuShips-collections photo NARA identifier 6933091 (16 October 1953) [other_primary]

   Locator

   navsource.net/archives/11/02448.htm photo-caption table; NARA identifier 6933091

   Finding type

   historical_record

   Finding

   Official Navy/DoD photography documents the hull's later service and disposal: the September-November 1987 tow by Grapple (ARS-53) with Inflict and Fearless to the Persian Gulf for escort-support operations (then the longest three-ship tow, ~9,000 nm, via the Suez Canal); operations at Rota and off Sitrah, Bahrain, in late 1987; and the hulk at the Sea Witch Marine Salvage site at Lambert Point, Baltimore, in 1993-94 alongside Coral Sea, corroborating the disposal record in ev-04/05. The NARA holdings pathway (RG 24 deck logs 1953-1990; RG 428/DVIC imagery; the DRMS/DSMO sale file behind the February 1993 disposal) is the lead for any deeper hull-specific work, including the IFB asbestos-compartment disclosures recited in Ellis.

   Verification

   partial

   Role

   archival_lead

   Documentation level

   ship_specific

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1953-1994 (imagery coverage)

   Limitations

   Image metadata and captions only - no asbestos, maintenance, or materials content. Captions carried via NavSource (secondary host); the underlying identifiers are official. NARA Catalog API could not be reached without an api.data.gov key this session; the getarchive.net NARA-index mirror returned HTTP 403; Wikimedia Commons holds no Illusive file. Deck-log digitization status for this hull unverified.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-07

8. [8]Era/design inference for the in-service period: 1951-laid nonmagnetic wooden-hulled ocean minesweeper, diesel propulsion (NVR), three documented 'Long Beach shipyard' periods (Oct 1954-Feb 1955 modifications; Nov 1956-May 1957 engine replacement; Mar 1964 overhaul, per DANFS) [other_primary]

   Locator

   DANFS yard-period dates (ev-01); NVR propulsion field (ev-02); era practice per GAO HRD-80-2 (ev-09)

   Finding type

   asbestos_application

   Finding

   For the in-service period (1953-1990) no hull-specific material schedule or survey was located; what follows is era inference only and is subordinate to the adjudicated disposal record (ev-04/05/06). A diesel-driven MSO carried a materially lighter insulation load than steam combatants - no boilers, no steam-line lagging. Era-typical asbestos applications for the type, if present, would concentrate in diesel exhaust/muffler lagging, machinery gaskets and packing, electrical-cable insulation, accommodation/joiner insulation and fireproofing, winch/windlass brake linings, and deck composition/tile. The documented Long Beach yard periods (major modifications 1954-55; engine replacement 1956-57; overhaul 1964) are the kind of machinery-space disturbance events associated with insulation tear-out - recorded as events, asbestos scope unproven.

   Verification

   inferred

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   class_or_era

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1951-1990

   Population

   Crew and Long Beach yard workers, 1953-1990 (inference only)

   Limitations

   Class/era inference only - NOT a hull materials record. Establishes no asbestos content, quantity, or location aboard during service; the diesel plant weakens even era inference relative to steam vessels. The documented asbestos record for this hull is disposal-phase only (DRMS sale disclosures and Ellis counts). Yard-period asbestos scope is inference; no work package or survey was retrieved.

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-08

9. [9]GAO, Navy Efforts To Protect Workers From Asbestos Exposure, HRD-80-2 (Oct 18, 1979) [gao]

   Locator

   GAO product page HRD-80-2

   Finding type

   gov_survey

   Finding

   GAO documented that the Navy used asbestos extensively in ship construction and overhaul and that worker-protection practices at naval shipyards were deficient - the program-level backdrop for era-consistent inference about a 1951-52-built Navy hull and for yard-period exposure at the yards that serviced her ('Long Beach shipyard' per DANFS).

   Verification

   verified

   Role

   context

   Documentation level

   context_only

   Accessed

   2026-09-22

   Study period

   1979 (report); construction/overhaul era generally

   Population

   Navy shipyard workers (program-level)

   Limitations

   Program-level report; names no individual hull and does not establish asbestos aboard this vessel. gao.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetch in Batch 01 (2026-09-14) - product-page description relied on; full text remains an open lead. Illusive's diesel plant removes the steam-boiler lagging pathway; residual era inference is limited to ancillary materials, and the ship-specific asbestos record for this hull is disposal-phase (ev-04/05/06).

   Atlas source

   true

   Evidence ID

   ev-uss-illusive-am448-09

10. [10]Batch-1363 search ledger (this record): NHHC DANFS (live 404; Wayback capture); NVR ship detail (Wayback); NavSource; ca4.uscourts.gov unpublished-opinion PDF; EPA newsroom archive; CourtListener API v4; VA BVA decisions search; web search for docketed litigation; local class profiles [other_primary]

    Locator

    search_ledger rows sl-uss-illusive-am448-01 through sl-uss-illusive-am448-10

    Finding type

    historical_record

    Finding

    No in-service/crew-era asbestos record located: no hull asbestos survey, BuShips material schedule, abatement contract, veteran claim, BVA decision, or civil litigation naming USS Illusive (AM-448/MSO-448) was found in the sources searched - the ship-specific asbestos documentation is disposal-phase only (DRMS sale disclosures and the Ellis counts). The CourtListener opinion/docket screen could not be run: authenticated API requests returned HTTP 429 (2,800/day quota exhausted, ~6.8h reset); a site-scoped web mitigation found only unrelated name collisions. That check is logged as blocked, not as a clean negative. Web-level hits are law-firm marketing ship lists and a derivative exposure-site page - classified as name-list collisions, not cases, and excluded as banned source types.

    Verification

    verified

    Role

    negative_finding

    Documentation level

    ship_specific

    Accessed

    2026-09-22

    Study period

    2026-09-22

    Limitations

    Absence of a located record is not proof of absence aboard during service - the hull was disposed with Navy-marked asbestos compartments (ev-04), so in-service presence is plausible but undocumented. The litigation screen is incomplete pending a fresh CourtListener quota: 'USS Illusive', 'MSO-448', 'AM-448', and 'Illusive'+asbestos queries must be re-run before the civil-litigation posture can be called a clean negative. Does not establish or defeat any crew-exposure or legal-eligibility claim.

    Atlas source

    true

    Evidence ID

    ev-uss-illusive-am448-10