Former clients, some of whom now face deportation proceedings, say they don’t fully understand the abuse-based immigration claims filed on their behalf.
TUKWILA, Wash. — A newly filed federal lawsuit accuses a prominent Seattle-area immigration attorney of steering immigrants toward immigration based on abuse, claiming they are ineligible, echoing complaints that have been quietly filed for years by the Washington Attorney General’s Office.
A federal lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court accuses Tukwila attorney Alexandra Lozano and her law firm of malfeasance, violation of consumer protections, breach of fiduciary duty and other charges. The lawsuit alleges that some clients were encouraged to seek immigration protections related to domestic abuse or human trafficking, even when the clients said the allegations were untrue.
Lozano denied wrongdoing in a statement to KING 5 and said she takes the allegations seriously.
“I’m proud that our work has helped change the lives of thousands of individuals and families,” Lozano said, adding that the immigration law landscape has changed dramatically in recent years.
KING 5 spoke with former clients and obtained records of complaints filed in 2021 with the Washington Attorney General’s Office describing similar accusations.
For siblings Izzy Picazo and Luis Manzo Rocha, the issue became personal on November 4, 2025, when ICE agents arrested their father, Nelson Picazo Sanchez, on his way to work.
“I’ve always been a daddy’s girl,” Izzy said through tears in November. “So at that moment, I felt like my dad was taken away from me.”
Picazo-Sanchez has no criminal record and had previously obtained a work permit.
But his children said they later discovered the license was linked to an immigration application based on abuse that their father never fully understood.
Through Lozano’s law firm, Picazo Sanchez applied for immigration protection under VAWA (Violence Against Women Act), a federal immigration pathway available to some victims of domestic violence.
When asked if their fathers had ever been victims of domestic violence, they shook their heads, laughed in disbelief and said, “No.”
The lawsuit alleges that some customers were encouraged to file VAWA claims for which they allegedly did not qualify and in some cases signed documents they did not fully understand.
Another former client, Gabriel Martinez Garcia, said Thursday that he qualified for a legal VAWA claim related to abuse by his ex-spouse, but said the process was never fully explained to him.
“She didn’t explain to me what VAWA was,” Garcia said. “She didn’t explain the documents to me. I had to figure out how to Google them myself.”
Garcia said his case was later dismissed over signature-related issues involving electronically filed documents, putting him in deportation proceedings.
“I have two kids,” Garcia said with tears in her eyes. “I was really scared when I was deported.”
Seattle immigration attorney Omar Barraza, who represents the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said the consequences could affect families for years.
“Most cases that are denied are sent to deportation court,” Barraza said. “Once you get into eviction proceedings, it’s going to be an uphill battle.”
Barraza said he worries the charges could also undermine legitimate VAWA cases.
Aric Bomsztyk, an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said hundreds of people have contacted the legal team since the website launched in connection with the lawsuit.
“We were inundated with calls,” Bomztic said.
Attorney general records reveal years of complaints
Complaint records obtained by KING 5 from the Washington Attorney General’s Office show that multiple former clients raised concerns about Lozano’s law firm years before the federal lawsuit was filed.
In a complaint filed in 2021, one woman wrote that she and her husband were encouraged to file for a VAWA petition “even though we never mentioned anything about abuse or any issues in our relationship.”
In another complaint filed in 2024, a man claimed that an attorney told him to accuse his wife of abuse “to make it easier to file for VAWA.”
The Washington State Bar Association told KING 5 there are no public disciplinary records involving Lozano. Under Washington court rules, attorneys’ complaints generally remain confidential unless they result in formal disciplinary action.
Co-counsels for Bomsztyk and Barraza gathered at Barraza’s South Seattle office Thursday along with several plaintiffs who had heard KING 5 was about to be interviewed. There, KING 5 met Garcia. He said he was surprised to see so many co-plaintiffs also present in person.
“I’m seeing more people online,” Garcia added. “That’s why I told my mom, ‘We gotta go, mom.'” We have to speak out so more people can speak out against her, because what she’s doing…is terrible. “
