A state lawyer is recommending a Merrillville immigration lawyer be either formally reprimanded or face a 30-day suspension for allegedly soliciting an undocumented teen for sex after she turned 18.
Alfredo Estrada, 44, of Burke Costanza & Carberry L.L.P., violated professional rules of conduct by allegedly “crudely” and “shamefully” propositioning the daughter of a longtime client who he was helping to obtain a specialized visa, Hearing Officer Clayton Miller wrote in a June 29 report.
However, it cleared Estrada of misconduct for allegedly giving her money in 2023 for nails, restaurants and concerts — saying it was unrelated to legal matters. It also cleared him of two other ethics violations, including representing two family members at once and could not conclude that Estrada’s actions compromised their case.
The complaint was opened in March 2025.
“I look forward to focusing on my family and practice,” Estrada said in a brief phone interview Wednesday. “I appreciate the (Indiana) Supreme Court and the hearing officer’s time and the whole process.”
The recommendation to the Indiana Supreme Court is only that — both the state and Estrada can contest the finding itself and proposed punishment within 30 days.
Estrada declined to answer if he would.
The victim, now 23, sued Estrada in civil court last year. It was settled out-of-court, filings show.
In filings, Estrada admitted propositioning her, but said it didn’t violate ethics rules, because she technically wasn’t his client at the time.
Miller flatly rejected this, saying he acted “selfishly” and violated a position of trust. If anything, her young age and “father’s immigration status increased her vulnerability,” Miller wrote. There was “clear and convincing evidence” she was Estrada’s client until she hired a new attorney in November 2023, he wrote.
Estrada “demonstrated limited insight into why his actions were problematic, given his position of trust,” Miller wrote. “While admitting his shameful conduct, (he) also deflected full responsibility by emphasizing that his conduct was in response to the rapport he had developed with (her), often at her initiation.”
Her father first hired Estrada in July 2018, when the girl was 15. When she was still a minor, Estrada started asking “inappropriate” questions on her “relationship” status, Miller wrote.
Estrada claimed it was to see if she had a spouse for immigration purposes. Miller wrote that wasn’t “credible.”
The father was trying to get a U-Visa, which gives crime victims a non-immigrant visa after they cooperate with police.
U-Visa recipients can apply for permanent residence status after three years, and Estrada filed a petition for a U-Visa for the man and his daughter in February 2019. The girl accompanied her father to appointments and became the family’s primary contact with Estrada, the original complaint stated, according to Post-Tribune archives.
The girl signed an agreement with Estrada to pursue relief under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program in March 2021, but in May of that year, Estrada’s office determined she was not eligible due to her arrival date.
The complaint stated that Estrada and the girl communicated on a variety of issues, including work authorizations, updates on the pending U-Visa, employment issues, the possibility of her brother sponsoring them, paperwork, and documents from the IRS between December 2020 and Estrada’s termination in mid-2023.
The tenor of his messages to the girl changed in January 2023, when Estrada called and texted the girl to discuss employment options and asked her to meet him for a meal, according to the original complaint. She responded two days later that she didn’t want to because Estrada is married.
On May 4, 2023, she recorded a phone conversation with Estrada, where he said he wanted to get together with her and “skip the games,” the complaint stated, claiming he would take care of her, and she would take care of him. She asked what Estrada wanted from her and he responded that he wanted everything, including to have sex with her and become her sugar daddy, according to the complaint.
After the conversation, Estrada left her a message about work authorizations, the complaint stated. He said he provided her with various amounts of money to use for such things as concerts, restaurants and nail care.
The girl met with a new attorney on June 26, 2023, and Estrada was terminated as her attorney.
Post-Tribune archives contributed.
