Sergeant Carter was a veteran of World War II, serving with the Navy Seabees in the Pacific. In Korea, he was a member of Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. He was seriously wounded by the enemy in South Korea on 15 September 1950 and returned to duty on 15 February 1951. On 16 July 1951 near Seoul, South Korea, as he was marking a mine field, he saw an elderly Korean woman in the field. As he tried to rescue her, he detonated a mine killing him.

Carter 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, the Republic of Korea War Service Medal, the World War II Victory Medal and the Asiatic-Pacific Service Medal.