NEW HAVEN, Conn. — A U.S. Army veteran who turned his life around after struggling with drug addiction is fighting his deportation, saying he should not have been expelled last year for a minor criminal record after honorably serving his country and living here legally for more than 50 years.

Arnold Giammarco was deported to his native Italy over drug possession and larceny convictions, his attorneys said. The former Connecticut resident is seeking to reverse his deportation, arguing in a federal lawsuit he planned to file Tuesday that immigration authorities never acted on his citizenship application in 1982.