Casey was a 2003 graduate of Coleman High School where he served on the student council and was active in sports, playing football, basketball and baseball. He was also a member of Board Scholars, the National Honor Society and was involved in the Drama Program and Midland County 4-H. Casey enlisted in the United States Army in July of 2005. Cpl Zylman received posthumous military honors, including the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, the Good Conduct Medal, and service medals including the Global War on Terror Medal and the Iraqi Campaign Medal. He was posthumously promoted to corporal. He died at age 23 of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle in Mosul, Iraq.