Boston's sheriff, Suffolk County Sheriff Steven Tompkins, has moved to dismiss the federal extortion charges filed against him, claiming that Tompkins didn't try to extort a cannabis executive as prosecutors allege.

And even if he had done what prosecutors said in indicting Tompkins, his lawyer said, the allegations don't meet the standard of a clear quid pro quo agreement that is required for conviction.

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"Instead, Mr. Tompkins made an investment as did many others, paid full value for it, and received no financial benefit not conferred on other buyers," attorney Martin Weinberg wrote in Friday's filing in U.S. District Court for Massachusetts.

Tompkins, who has led the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department since 20

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