Sergeant First Class Bagnell was a member of the 1st Airborne Ranger Company, 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. He was Killed in Action while fighting the enemy in South Korea on 19 May 1951.

Bagnell was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Korean War Service Medal.