The elected sheriff of Suffolk County is on trial in federal court in Boston, charged with extorting $50,000 from a cannabis company executive. Opening statements were Tuesday. The case is expected to run about two weeks.
Steven W. Tompkins has pleaded not guilty and denies the allegations. Nothing described below has been proven to a jury.
The charge
Tompkins faces two counts of extortion under color of official right in United States v. Tompkins, No. 1:25-cr-10334, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. U.S. District Judge Myong J. Joun is presiding. Each count carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.
He is charged alone. There are no co-defendants.
“Under color of official right” is the legal core of the case. It describes extortion committed not through force or threats of violence but through the power of public office itself, where an official obtains something of value they are not entitled to because of the authority they hold. That framing matters, because it explains why the government told jurors this case contains no violence at all.
What prosecutors say happened
The government’s account centers on Ascend Wellness Holdings, a multistate cannabis retailer, and on Frank Perullo, a longtime Boston political operative who co-founded the company.
The alleged leverage was a re-entry partnership. The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department had an arrangement with Ascend to train and hire formerly incarcerated people. Prosecutors say that partnership helped Ascend demonstrate community impact as it sought a Boston retail license from the Cannabis Control Commission, and that it gave Tompkins something the company needed.
The financial sequence prosecutors describe:
- November 2020: Tompkins buys a pre-IPO stake, reported as 14,417 shares at roughly $9.60 per share, about $50,000, wired from his retirement account.
- March 2021: the Cannabis Control Commission approves Ascend’s license.
- 2021: Ascend goes public and the stake peaks at roughly $138,403.
- The share price then falls below what he paid.
- 2022 to 2023: Tompkins allegedly demands and receives a full $50,000 refund, paid by Perullo across five checks.
The sentence at the center of the government’s case is one prosecutors attribute to Tompkins while pressing for that money, a reference to the address of Ascend’s Boston dispensary: “I helped you get Friend Street.” Outlets covering the opening rendered the phrasing slightly differently, so treat the exact wording as unsettled until the transcript is available.
The two openings
Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin Chao opened for the government with a single line the Boston Globe put in its headline: “This case is about corruption.” He told jurors there was no violence and no naked threats, describing instead what he called subtle but ominous pressure.
Martin G. Weinberg opened for the defense, and went straight at the government’s proof. What the government has, he said, is “an accusation, not evidence.” The case, he argued, comes down to the uncorroborated testimony of one man who received immunity in what Weinberg called a cynical exchange.
His substantive defense has four parts: Tompkins had no actual authority over cannabis licensing, so there was no official power to abuse; Perullo had no reasonable fear of economic harm; the stock purchase was a business transaction at full market value between longtime friends; and Perullo later urged people to vote for Tompkins. Weinberg’s line on that last point: “Friends or extortion victims don’t urge people to vote for someone who did something wrong to them.”
He called his client innocent.
Weinberg is among the most experienced federal defense lawyers in Massachusetts and also handled Karen Read’s appeal, a detail worth noting given how often the two cases now share the same courthouse press corps.
The immunity problem
Perullo is the government’s central witness, and he is testifying under an immunity agreement. That is the fault line of the trial.
Cases built on a single cooperating witness live or die on corroboration, which is why both sides spent their openings on it. Prosecutors have pointed to a text message in which Tompkins asks to withdraw his funds after the stock lost value. The defense will argue that a request to unwind a losing investment between friends is exactly what it looks like.
The first government witness was Abner Kurtin, an Ascend co-founder, who testified about the company’s IPO and, according to GBH, said he never heard any threats from Tompkins and had no knowledge of the sheriff’s investment. His testimony continued Wednesday.
One name on the defense list stands out: Andrea Cabral, who was Suffolk County sheriff before Tompkins, who was his boss, and who is now chief executive of Ascend Massachusetts. She is expected to testify for the defense.
He is still the sheriff
A point some coverage has gotten wrong: Tompkins has not resigned and is not a former sheriff. He remains the elected sheriff of Suffolk County, with a term running to 2028.
He stepped away from his duties on unpaid leave in August 2025, after Governor Maura Healey and Attorney General Andrea Campbell asked him to, with his attorney citing a doctor’s recommendation and a serious medical issue. Special Sheriff Mark Lawhorne has been running the department since.
That distinction is not a technicality. Under Massachusetts law the governor cannot remove an elected sheriff, and a conviction alone does not empty the office. We explain what actually would in what happens to the office if Tompkins is convicted.
Common questions
What is Sheriff Tompkins charged with?
Two counts of extortion under color of official right, in federal court in Boston. Each count carries a maximum of 20 years. He has pleaded not guilty.
What is he accused of doing?
Prosecutors allege he used the sheriff department’s re-entry partnership with a cannabis company as leverage to obtain a $50,000 refund on a stock investment that had lost value. The defense says it was an ordinary investment between friends and that he had no authority over cannabis licensing.
Is Steven Tompkins still the sheriff?
Yes. He has been on unpaid leave since August 2025 but has not resigned. Special Sheriff Mark Lawhorne is running the department.
How long will the trial last?
About two weeks, with proceedings scheduled through early September 2026.
Who is the judge?
U.S. District Judge Myong J. Joun, in the District of Massachusetts.
Tompkins is presumed innocent. Allegations described here are the government’s contentions and have not been proven. Reporting current as of August 26, 2026.