Captain McVay was crucified
Exactly the Japanese sub captain said the zig-zagging (or lack thereof) would not have made a difference.
The Admirals knew this as well.
Not by his crew, they never blamed him.
McVay received hate mail from the families of some of the men lost on the Indianapolis. That, and his treatment by the Navy, left him a broken man.
Initially, Capt McVay declined invitations to attend crew reunions, believing they blamed him for the disaster. He finally relented, and was welcomed warmly by his former shipmates. McVay also found happiness in his second marriage, to a wealthy New Orleans socialite.
But it wasn’t enough. Twenty-four years after the loss of his shop and much of his crew, McVay walked outside his home, put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger.
Some say he was the last victim of the USS Indianapolis.