Following an inter-service dispute over missile programs, in 1957 Nickerson became the first American to be charged under the Espionage Act for leaking classified national security information to the press.

[6]: 14  As a lieutenant colonel, Nickerson led the battalion into combat on July 6, 1944 and saw action in the Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland and Central Europe campaigns.

[7] He received the Silver Star for his action under fire in the Battle of Hürtgen Forest during the Rhineland campaign,[8][6]: 35-36  and one bronze oak leaf cluster in lieu of a second Silver Star for his actions under fire in the Central Europe campaign during the advance on the Ruhr pocket near the towns of Valbert, Oberbrügge and Milspe, Germany.

[9] While defending their positions near Cologne in early 1945, Nickerson observed German V-2 rocket launches; he later credited the experience for his interest in rocketry.

[5] Nickerson, concerned that the 200-mile range limit[2] on the Army's missiles would force the end of the Jupiter program, traveled to D.C. in late November to speak out against Wilson's decision, to little success.

"Considerations" reached, among others, Drew Pearson, author of the "Washington Merry-Go-Round" column; Erik Bergaust, managing editor of Missiles & Rockets;[10] and William F. Hunt and John A. Baumann, employees of Reynolds Metal Company and the Radio Corporation of America respectively who were both involved at Redstone Arsenal.

[10] Pearson, uncertain if the information in "Considerations" could be legally published, took his copy of the document to the Defense Department to check, where it was promptly seized[5] and universally classified.

When he failed to appear for the scheduled second round of interrogation, military police traveled to his home[10] and, finding two classified documents in his unlocked desk drawer, arrested him.

[10] His defense team, led by civilian lawyer Ray Jenkins, argued that Nickerson's leaks were motivated by "loyalty to the Army and country" and were not intended to undermine national security, further alleging that the information included in "Considerations" was already public knowledge to foreign agents.

[2] On March 1, 1964, both Nickerson and his wife Caroline were killed in a head-on automobile collision on Route 54 near a missile center in Alamogordo, New Mexico.