Lieutenant Colonel Adam King, Judge Advocate, U.S. Marine Corps
The Port Chicago 50 court-martial illustrates both the injustice of racial segregation in the U.S. Navy during World War II and the insufficient legal process provided by the Articles for the Government of the Navy. This case served as a catalyst for change in the long fight against prejudice and inequity.
Randy Cornelius, U.S. Air Force veteran
The court-martial of Captain Charles McVay of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) after it was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine on 30 July 1945. The facts show the ineptness of the naval bureaucracy and a heavy-handed decision to court-martial McVay that may have been based on personal feelings rather than objective analysis. The Navy also brought as a witness the commander of the Japanese submarine.
Eugene Fidell, Yale Law School, co-author of Military Justice: Cases and Materials
The most unfair naval case was not a court-martial. In 1842, Midshipman Philip Spencer (son of Secretary of War John C. Spencer) and two others were summarily hanged for mutiny on board the brig USS Somers following a meeting of the ship’s officers. The incident inspired Herman Melville’s novella Billy Budd.
Paul Steinberg, Attorney, Marine Corps Veteran, Life Member
The most unjust court-martial is one that did not occur. As the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association pointed out in a 1986 resolution, Admiral Husband Kimmel was denied a court-martial to clear his name. The manner in which the Roberts Commission operated was an affront to due process and maritime justice.
Commander Philip D. Cave, Judge Advocate General’s Corps, U.S. Navy (Retired)
Royal Navy Admiral John Byng was convicted at court-martial and shot on his own quarterdeck by his Marines in 1757 because he failed to relieve the British garrison at Minorca. His defense—failure of political and military leaders in providing ships, men, and supplies. Voltaire later satirized this event in his novel Candide: “In [England], it is wise to kill an admiral from time to time so as to encourage the others.”
Michael Romero, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Commodore James Barron’s five-year suspension from the service for failing to prepare the USS Chesapeake for battle when she was attacked by HMS Leopard in 1807 was egregious, especially as the ship’s commanding officer, Master Commandant Charles Gordon, received only a private reprimand and returned to duty.
Tom Rudder, World War II Veteran
I was a radioman on board the USS Birmingham (CL-62) in World War II. We were docked at Pearl Harbor after being hit by a kamikaze plane at Okinawa. My best friend Bill Raymond was on the dock alongside the ship when shore patrol noticed the cuff on his shirt was rolled up one turn and cited him for being out of uniform, resulting in a court-martial. I am still furious when I think of it.
Elliot Miller
In October 1864, Commander Napoleon Collins, commanding the USS Wachusett, attacked and captured the CSS Florida in the neutral port of Bahia, Brazil. Brazil complained via diplomatic channels of neutrality violations. Court-martial charges resulted. Collins admitted his actions and was found guilty on 7 April 1865 and sentenced to dismissal from the service.
Gordon Shenkle
No question, the court-martial of Captain Charles Butler McVay III, commanding officer of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35), after she was torpedoed and sunk on 30 July 1945. He was the only commanding officer subjected to court-martial for losing a ship to an act of war.
Marc C. DeLamater, USNI member since 1974
The Port Chicago 50 was the most unfair court-martial in history because of its heavy handedness and racial bias in the wake of the 1944 Port Chicago disaster. It is not a question of being woke or presentism, but of justice for servicemen who simply did not want to get blown up.
Jeff Lichtig
Captain Charles B. McVay III, skipper of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35) during World War II, was unjustly court-martialed. I am not sure about the history part of the question, but Captain McVay did not deserve the hell he endured.
Craig Pearson
The court-martial of British Admiral John Byng confounds my sense of justice. Byng was found guilty of violating the Articles of War because he failed to “do his utmost” during the Battle of Minorca. Some historians believe this was only done to instill an aggressive nature in the fleet.
Marc Light
In 1908, the USS Decatur (DD-5) ran aground on a sand bar in the Philippines. The officer in command was an ensign with just two years of experience. Ensign Chester Nimitz was convicted for “neglect of duty.” However, the court-martial did not scuttle his career. He was used to applying himself, as he had graduated seventh in his class of 114 at the Naval Academy. At age 60, after a parade in his hometown of Kerrville, Texas, in October 1945, Fleet Admiral Nimitz was finally awarded the high school diploma he had earned but not received before leaving for Annapolis.
Petty Officer Donald McLean, U.S. Coast Guard (Retired)
The court-martial of Private Edward Donald Slovik in World War II. He was the only U.S. servicemember executed for desertion in World War II and the first since the American Civil War.
Sam Silberstein
The court-martial of the skipper of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35). The captain was the last man off the ship and was the last man to be picked up when the surviving crew was rescued. That says a lot about his compassion for his crew. His crew always thought he did the utmost for them and many thought they had only survived because of him. This travesty of justice has yet to be rectified by the Navy.
Commander Steve Cloak, Jr., U.S. Navy (Retired)
The court-martial of Captain Charles B. McVay III, skipper of the USS Indianapolis (CA-35). This represented a failure of the Navy’s investigatory ability and the unconscionable hunt for a scapegoat.
Captain Bill Hannan, Judge Advocate General’s Corps, U.S. Navy Reserve (Retired)
The 1757 court-martial of Vice Admiral John Byng, Royal Navy, that resulted in his shipboard execution by firing squad.
