42 pages • 1 hour read
Left for Dead
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Key Figures
Pete Nelson
Pete Nelson is the author of 18 fiction and nonfiction books. He has also written for a number of magazines including Playboy, Outside, MS, National Wildlife, and Redbook. 12 of his novels are aimed at young adults; he is a doting father and has a particular interest in writing for this audience. Left for Dead is Nelson’s most popular and critically acclaimed work, winning the 2003 Christopher award, and being named on the American Library Association's 2003 top ten list.
Hunter Scott
Hunter Scott, a hard-working and intelligent eleven-year student from Pensacola, Florida, decided to investigate the sinking of the USS Indianapolis for his upcoming school history fair project. After struggling to find information in history books on the sinking, Hunter used a naval newspaper to locate survivors, where he learned about the miscarriage of justice which saw Captain McVay scapegoated by the US navy for the deaths of hundreds of men. His history fair project soon became a campaign to restore the good name of Captain Charles B. McVay III.
It was a campaign which brought him into contact with many survivors and which led him to a legal battle in Washington DC. As Hunter’s story gathered more national and international coverage and interest, individuals from around the world sent Hunter more information and testimonies, which allowed Hunter to further strengthen his case. Hunter and his team prepared a portfolio of proof which they distributed to members of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
On September 14th, 1999, Hunter (by this time 14 years old) and his team convinced a Senate Armed Services Committee that Captain McVay’s court-martial should never have occurred. Furthermore, Hunter convinced those present that the crew of the USS Indianapolis should be awarded a Presidential Unit Citation in recognition of their courage.
Captain Charles B. McVay III
Captain Charles B. McVay was an American naval officer and commanding officer of the USS Indianapolis, which sank after being struck by two Japanese torpedoes early in the morning of July 30th, 1945. McVay was condemned in a court of inquiry held in the Philippines shortly after the sinking of the Indianapolis in 1945, and again in an official court-martial in the US after the conclusion of the war in 1945.
McVay was condemned for failing to undertake a zigzag route when he was traveling from Guam to Leyte. Instead, at the time the ship was struck, he was taking a more direct route along the Peddie route between Guam and the Philippines. Given the court-martial ruled that the conditions were relatively clear, this was thought to have been an erroneous judgement, which contributed significantly to the ship being struck by two Japanese torpedoes fired from the Japanese i-58 captained by lieutenant commander Mochitsura Hashimoto.
McVay took his own life in 1968. Guilt over the ruling which tarnished his reputation is a potential contributing factor. McVay was exonerated in 2001, when a senate resolution ruling the court-martial to be a miscarriage of justice was added to his file.
Giles McCoy
Giles McCoy was a twenty-one-year-old marine aboard the USS Indianapolis. He also served as McVay’s personal orderly, bodyguard and message runner. McCoy was guarding the brig, the ship’s prison, when the torpedoes struck the USS Indianapolis. He was helping injured men from underneath destroyed bunks when he heard the command: “dogging the hatches” (63). McCoy ran out of the nearest hatch before it was “dogged” behind him (sealed) with steel pins. McCoy heard men screaming and begging behind the sealed hatch; these cries would haunt him for the rest of his life. McCoy jumped into the water and was pulled aboard a raft as part of a group of 16 men. Of this group, only McCoy and one other man—Bob Brundige—were still alive when help finally came 113 hours later.
McCoy organized a reunion of the survivors in 1960. He was able to track down 220 of the 317 survivors. He became chairman of the Indianapolis Survivors’ Association. For decades he contacted the President and appealed to senators and members of Congress for the court-martial of Captain McVay to be reexamined and repealed. He attended, and testified at, the Senate Armed Services Committee with Hunter Scott, which led to the exoneration of Captain McVay.
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