Korean War soldier from Georgia identified
ATLANTA - A Georgia soldier who went missing during the Korean War will finally be laid to rest with full military honors.
Private James M. Smith, of Abbeville, will be buried Wednesday in Arlington National Cemetery. Smith went missing in action during a counterattack in February 1951. A search of the battlefield was conducted two years later, but there was no trace of Smith. The military changed his status to deceased that same year.
Smith’s remains were turned over from North Korea as part of a joint recovery operation. They used DNA and dental records to identify him.
About 7,823 Americans remain unaccounted for from the Korean conflict. Officials are using the latest technologies to try to identify the remains from the war.