Corporal Pritchett was a member of Company F, 2nd Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division. He was seriously wounded by the enemy in South Korea on 19 September 1950 and returned to duty on 11 November 1950. He was taken Prisoner of War while fighting the enemy in North Korea on 26 November 1950. He was presumed dead on 5 February 1954. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Pritchett was awarded the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Prisoner of War Medal, 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.