Private West was a rifleman with the 3rd Platoon, Company I, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was Killed in Action by an enemy sniper while on patrol against an enemy outpost near "Heartbreak Ridge", North Korea, on 26 October 1951.

West 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.