Evidence
9 evidence entries recorded; each entry has a stable permalink (#ev-1 … #ev-9).
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[1]CourtListener docket search: 'CA-35' [court_record]
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- CourtListener docket search 'CA-35' returned 628615 result(s) (2026-10-07); individual records not reviewed
- Verification
- unverified
- Role
- archival_lead
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Limitations
- hit count only — underlying dockets/opinions not individually reviewed
- Evidence ID
- uss-indianapolis-ca35-cl-hull-docket
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[2]DANFS, Indianapolis II (CA-35), Vol. III (1968) (builder, dates, specifications, service narrative; verbatim transcription - live NHHC page serves 404) [nhhc_danfs]
- Locator
- DANFS entry, specifications block + service narrative (ibiblio HyperWar transcription; departure date verified in hazegray/LostHistory transcription of the same printed entry, losthistory.net/hazegray/danfs/cruisers/ca35.txt)
- Finding type
- vessel_history
- Finding
- DANFS record for this hull: laid down 31 March 1930 by New York Shipbuilding Corp., Camden, N.J.; launched 7 November 1931; commissioned at Philadelphia Navy Yard 15 November 1932; flagship of Scouting Force and of the Fifth Fleet (Adm. Spruance) 1943-45; kamikaze-damaged off Okinawa 31 March 1945; repaired at Mare Island; carried atomic-bomb components from San Francisco to Tinian (departed 16 July, arrived 26 July 1945); departed Guam 28 July for Leyte; struck by two torpedoes from I-58 at 0015 on 30 July 1945 and capsized and sank in 12 minutes at 12 deg 02' N, 134 deg 48' E; '316 of the crew of 1,199 men' saved; 10 battle stars.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1930-1945
- Population
- New York Shipbuilding construction trades 1930-32; wartime crew
- Limitations
- DANFS documents service history and specifications, not materials or asbestos content. Casualty figures vary across official sources (this transcription reads 1,199 aboard/316 saved; the NHHC-ordered accounting in ev-06 supersedes all of them). The ibiblio transcription reads 'departed San Francisco on 15 July' while the hazegray transcription of the same printed entry reads '16 July' - carried as 16 July, which the entry's own '10 days' passage supports; transcription split logged in gaps. Mirror transcriptions cited because the live NHHC page returns 404. DANFS's closing editorial line on Capt. McVay ('vindicated from any blame') is contradicted by the documented court-martial conviction - see correction row ev-07.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-01
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[3]NHHC (Sandy Gall), 'Finding USS Indianapolis - After 70 Years, What Changed?', DVIDS/Navy release (Sept. 13, 2017); corroborating DoD/Navy News Service release 'Researchers Find Wreckage of USS Indianapolis' (Aug. 20, 2017) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DVIDS story 261060 (NHHC byline, fetched live 2026-09-19); DoD release text verified via search index (403 on direct fetch)
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Navy-documented wreck record: the wreck was located 18-19 August 2017 by the expedition crew of R/V Petrel (Paul G. Allen / Vulcan) at more than three miles depth (~18,000 ft) in the Philippine Sea, after NHHC historian Richard Hulver's LST-779 deck-log research and an NHHC/NHF/USNA drift-model study moved the estimated sinking position roughly 35 miles from the 1945 reported position; the wreck was found six miles outside the Navy's proposed search area; the Navy retains ownership, treats the site as a war grave under the Sunken Military Craft Act, and withholds the coordinates.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1945-07-30; 2016-2017
- Population
- Crew lost with the ship and survivors (1945); Vulcan/Petrel expedition and NHHC personnel (2016-2017)
- Limitations
- Documents wreck discovery, custody, and casualty context only; contains no materials, asbestos, or insulation-survey information. Discovery imagery (ROV video) is not a materials survey. Precise coordinates are withheld by the Navy; the ~35-mile offset from the 1945 reported position is why lat/lon is left null rather than carrying the DANFS coordinates. DoD release URL (defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/1283776) returns HTTP 403 to automated fetch - DVIDS NHHC-bylined article cited as the verified live official source.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-02
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[4]Navypedia, PORTLAND-class heavy cruisers (machinery: 8 Yarrow boilers, 4 sets Parsons geared steam turbines, 107,000 shp, 4 shafts) cross-checked against BuShips 'Ships' Data, U.S. Naval Vessels 1945' CA section book p.33 (OCR-verified 2026-09-16) + Atlas shipyard dataset, New York Shipbuilding yard record (asbestos product documentation and cohort findings) [other_primary]
- Locator
- navypedia us_cr_portland.htm technical-data block (fetched live 2026-09-19); BuShips SDB1945v1 book p.33 (shipscribe.com PDF 404 on 2026-09-19, OCR-verified 2026-09-16); shipyards.json record 'new-york-shipbuilding'
- Finding type
- asbestos_application
- Finding
- Era inference: a treaty-era heavy cruiser built 1930-32 with an eight-boiler, 107,000-shp steam plant would have carried period-standard asbestos-containing insulation, lagging, gaskets, packing, fireproofing, and deck coverings; builder New York Shipbuilding is documented in the Atlas yard dataset as a tier-1 yard with extensive era asbestos product use and elevated cohort mortality findings.
- Verification
- inferred
- Role
- supporting
- Documentation level
- class_or_era
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1930-1945
- Population
- New York Shipbuilding construction trades 1930-32; crew 1932-45
- Limitations
- Class/era and builder-yard inference only - NOT a hull-specific finding. No insulation survey for CA-35 exists or is feasible at wreck depth; does not quantify material, does not establish any individual's exposure, and makes no claim about the lost crew. DANFS's spec block carries only dimensions/speed/complement/armament for this hull - the machinery fit is sourced to the class technical record (navypedia, cross-checked to the official BuShips 1945 data table; shipscribe PDF now serves 404).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-03
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[5]Gilstrap v. CBS Corp., No. 19-309-MN-SRF, Report and Recommendation (D. Del. 2021) [court_record]
- Locator
- Report and Recommendation, Facts section - 'General Dynamics/Electric Boat shipyard in Groton, Connecticut, where Mr. Gilstrap was present from 1975 through 1980... USS Omaha and USS Indianapolis... Chief of the Boat from construction through to commissioning'
- Finding type
- litigation_documented
- Finding
- Verified name collision: 'USS Indianapolis' appears in this asbestos personal-injury docket, but the opinion's own facts show the vessel is SSN-697, the Los Angeles-class submarine built at Electric Boat (Groton, Conn.) - the decedent served at the Groton shipyard 1975-1980 aboard USS Omaha and USS Indianapolis as Chief of the Boat 'from construction through to commissioning.' Not CA-35, which sank in 1945, more than a decade before the decedent's 1956 enlistment.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- context_only
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 2019-2021 (litigation)
- Population
- Navy submarine veteran (engine-room supervisor / Chief of the Boat), 1956-1980 service; mesothelioma
- Limitations
- Documents a different hull (SSN-697); establishes nothing about CA-35. Carried as a correction row because CourtListener exact-name searches for 'USS Indianapolis' return this case; unreviewed readers could otherwise misattribute it. PDF re-fetched and text-extracted 2026-09-19 (served 200; host historically intermittent).
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-04
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[6]Batch-183 search ledger (this record): NHHC/DANFS transcriptions; NHHC/DVIDS wreck releases; NPS-hosted NHHC wreck analysis; CourtListener exact-name and hull-number queries re-run 2026-09-19 (authenticated API v4); NPS/museum-disclosure search [other_primary]
- Locator
- search_ledger rows sl-uss-indianapolis-ca35-04 through sl-uss-indianapolis-ca35-08
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- No qualifying ship-specific asbestos record located: no materials/insulation survey exists or is feasible (wreck at >18,000 ft, documented by ROV imagery only), no abatement or hazmat disclosure exists, and no qualifying asbestos case names CA-35. CourtListener re-run 2026-09-19: 'USS Indianapolis' returns 0 opinions and the same 14 RECAP dockets - Gilstrap v. CBS re-verified as the SSN-697 collision, remainder copyright/municipal/other litigation; 'CA-35' returns only identifier collisions (Ohio appellate docket numbers, bankruptcy case numbers).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- negative_finding
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 2026-09-19
- Limitations
- Absence of a located public record does not prove absence of asbestos aboard - a cruiser sunk with her 1945 fit intact retains era materials in the wreck; the ship never underwent postwar scrapping or abatement. Does not establish or defeat any claim of exposure or legal eligibility.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-05
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[7]NHHC (MC2 Lindsay Preston), 'Honoring the Sacrifice of Those Who Served: Navy Shares Final Crew Accounting at USS Indianapolis Survivors Reunion,' DVIDS/Navy release (July 20, 2018); underlying paper: Richard A. Hulver (NHHC historian) & Sara Vladic, U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings (March 2018) [other_primary]
- Locator
- DVIDS story 285152 (NHHC byline, fetched live 2026-09-19): 'the final numbers for Indianapolis are: 1195 Sailors and Marines sailed on the ship's final voyage, 879 were lost when she was sunk, and 316 were eventually rescued'
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- The formal crew accounting ordered by NHHC Director Sam Cox after the 2017 wreck discovery concludes: 1,195 sailors and Marines were aboard when Indianapolis was torpedoed (superseding the long-reported 1,196 and DANFS's 'crew of 1,199'); 316 survived - the Navy's original 1945 figure confirmed, with the occasionally reported 317 traced to a clerical error (passenger Clarence W. Donnor, who reported aboard but never sailed, was carried on reconstructed lists as a survivor); 879 lives were lost.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1945; 2017-2018 (review)
- Population
- Crew lost with the ship and survivors (1945)
- Limitations
- Resolves the aboard/survivor counts only; documents casualty accounting, not materials or asbestos content. The wreck remains unsurveyable for materials at >18,000 ft.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-06
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[8]Congressional Record, Vol. 147 (2001), p. 14817, 'Exoneration of Captain Charles B. McVay III' (Rep. Carson); H.J. Res. 48 / S.J. Res. 26 (106th Cong.) bill texts reciting the conviction record [other_primary]
- Locator
- CRECB-2001-pt10-Pg14817 (fetched live 2026-09-19); H.J.Res.48 and S.J.Res.26 bill texts (govinfo BILLS-106hjres48ih, BILLS-106sjres26pcs): 'convicted on February 23, 1946, on the charge of suffering a vessel to be hazarded through negligence'
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- Corrects the DANFS transcription's closing editorial line ('Captain McVay... was vindicated from any blame concerned with the loss of his ship' - flagged '[Error?]' in the HyperWar transcription itself): McVay was in fact convicted by court-martial on 23 February 1946 of 'suffering a vessel to be hazarded through negligence.' Exoneration language was inserted in the FY2001 Defense Authorization Act expressing the sense of Congress that McVay should be exonerated, and the Department of the Navy subsequently modified his record to reflect the exoneration (Congressional Record, July 2001).
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- correction
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 1945-1946 (court of inquiry/court-martial); 1999-2001 (exoneration)
- Limitations
- Documents the judicial/legislative record on the commanding officer only - unrelated to materials or asbestos content. Carried so the record does not silently reproduce or silently omit DANFS's factually wrong editorial line. The 2001 floor speech still uses the pre-2018 '317 survivors' figure; the NHHC accounting (ev-06) governs crew counts.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-07
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[9]Blair Atcheson & Richard Hulver (NHHC Underwater Archaeology Branch), 'USS Indianapolis Discovered! Now What?', transcript of presentation at NPS/NCPTT symposium 'Preserving U.S. Military Heritage: WWII to the Cold War' (June 2019), hosted on nps.gov [nps]
- Locator
- nps.gov transcript (fetched live 2026-09-19), presentation body + Q&A; last updated by NPS June 2024
- Finding type
- historical_record
- Finding
- NHHC wreck-site analysis from Vulcan ROV data: hull number 35 confirmed identity; wreck lies capsized in remarkable preservation at ~3.5 miles ('the Navy's deepest confirmed shipwreck'); bow severed forward of frame 10; torpedo impacts confirmed at the bow (frames ~6-7) and midships near frame 46, matching 1945 survivor accounts; NHHC's drift model had placed the wreck roughly 35 miles from the 1945 reported sinking position; the site is a sunken military craft under Navy jurisdiction and Sunken Military Craft Act protection, managed by NHHC, with a permit program governing any directed research - no recovery of this hull is planned.
- Verification
- verified
- Role
- context
- Documentation level
- ship_specific
- Accessed
- 2026-09-19
- Study period
- 2017-2019
- Population
- Vulcan/Petrel expedition; NHHC Underwater Archaeology Branch (2017-2019)
- Limitations
- Documents wreck condition, archaeology, and site-management policy from video/ROV imagery only - no materials sampling was performed and no insulation or asbestos assessment exists in the record. Site facts (bow severed, torpedo-impact frames) are historical context, not exposure evidence. Direction of the ~35-mile offset is stated differently across NHHC sources ('southeast' in this 2019 transcript vs 'south and west' in the 2017 DVIDS release); the consistent, load-bearing fact is the ~35-mile offset magnitude, which is all this record asserts.
- Atlas source
- true
- Evidence ID
- ev-uss-indianapolis-ca35-08