First Lieutenant Smith received a battlefield commission on his second tour in Korea. When on his third tour, he was a member of the 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was Killed in Action while fighting the enemy in North Korea on 25 March 1953.

Smith was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.