DUSM Convicted of Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law and Falsification of Records

On April 15, 2026, a Deputy United States Mashal (DUSM) assigned to the Western District of Louisiana (WDLA), Lafayette, Louisiana sub-office, was found guilty of one count of deprivation of rights under color of law and one count of falsification of records in federal investigations after a three-day trial by jury. Joshua Firmin was convicted in the WDLA. According to the evidence presented at trial, on or about February 29, 2024, Firmin, while acting under color of law as a DUSM, willfully deprived a federal prisoner of the right to be free from cruel and unusual punishment by physically assaulting the federal prisoner causing bodily injury. Firmin then knowingly falsified and made a false entry in a record and document, with the intent to impede, obstruct, and influence the investigation and proper administration of a matter within the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General by making statements in a USMS Field Operational Report that Firmin knew to be false. The investigation was conducted by the OIG’s Houston Office.