Second Lieutenant Dugan was a member of Company C, 1st Battalion, 65th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division. He was Killed in Action while fighting the enemy in North Korea on 21 September 1952. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

For his leadership and valor, Second Lieutenant Dugan was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, 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.