Private Merritt was a member of Battery B, 82nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery (Automatic Weapons) Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. On 1 February 1952, he died from accidental asphyxiation from carbon monoxide near Kumhwa, North Korea.

Merritt was awarded 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.