Ladislau Tlapa was born on June 6, 1923, in Cook County, Illinois. He was the son of Jan "John" Tlapa and Bessie Stastny Tlapa. Ladislau served in Company F, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, as a Private during World War II.

On the night before D-Day, June 6, 1944, American paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division were deployed near Sainte-Mère-Église, France. The town had recently been attacked, and a fire ignited by a stray bomb had drawn German soldiers and villagers into the town square to form a bucket brigade. The area was well-lit due to the fire, and when two planes mistakenly dropped paratroopers directly over the village, they became exposed and easy targets for the Germans.

Among the paratroopers who were Killed in Action was Pvt Tlapa, whose parachute got caught on the church roof. Following the roof landing, he fell from a tree and died that night. He is now buried in the Woodlawn Cemetery, Forest Park, Cook County, Illinois, USA. Pvt Tlapa was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart in recognition of his bravery and sacrifices.