Corporal Pierson served was a member of Battery A, 58th Field Artillery Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division. On 23 August 1951, he was en route to Japan for rest and recreation (R&R) when the truck in which he was riding ran over a cliff near Uijonbu, South Korea.

Pierson was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Korean War Service Medal.