Corporal Patton was a member of Headquarters and Service Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division. He was Killed in Action while leading an assault on a ridge held by the enemy in the suburbs of Seoul, South Korea, by small arms fire on 24 September 1950.

Patton was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Action Ribbon, 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.