Private First Class De Nigris was a member of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was Killed in Action while fighting the enemy in North Korea on 24 October 1951.

De Nigris 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.