Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca10-89-04078/USCOURTS-ca10-89-04078-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Joseph A. Bonacci
Appellant
Wayne Thomas Dance
Appellee
Richard Allen Tyree
Appellant
United States of America
Appellee

Document Text:

FILED 

Unit.ed StaMS Court of Appeals Tenth Circuit 

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS 

TENTH CIRCUIT 

Af.R _2 _7 1990 

ROBEH.T L. HOECKER 

Clerk 

RICHARD ALLEN TYREE and JOSEPH A. 

BONACCI, 

Plaintiffs-Appellants, 

v. 

WAYNE THOMAS DANCE, and THE UNITED 

STATES OF AMERICA, 

Defendants-Appellees. 

ORDER AND JUDGMENT* 

No. 89-4078 

(D.C. No. 88-C-431W} 

(D. Utah} 

Before McKAY, ANDERSON, and TACHA, Circuit Judges. 

After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel 

has determined unanimously that oral argument would not materially 

assist the determination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 

34(a}; 10th Cir. R. 34.1.9. The case is therefore ordered 

submitted without oral argument. 

Richard A. Tyree and Joseph A. Bonacci appeal the district 

court's order dismissing their suit for damages and injunctive 

relief against Wayne Dance, an Assistant United States Attorney, 

and the United States. Tyree and Bonacci allege that they were 

* This order and judgment has no precedential value and shall 

not be cited, or used by any court within the Tenth Circuit, 

except for purposes of establishing the doctrines of the law of 

the case, res judicata, or collateral estoppel. 10th Cir. R. 

36.3. 

Appellate Case: 89-4078 Document: 01019967121 Date Filed: 04/27/1990 Page: 1 
~- . 

damaged by Dance's performance of prosecutorial functions before 

admission to the Utah Bar. 

We have previously held that Dance was properly admitted to 

practice before the District of Utah and was authorized to perform 

the functions of Assistant United States Attorney. See Tyree~ 

United States, 892 F.2d 958 (10th Cir. 1989). Because Dance is a 

federal prosecutor, he is entitled to absolute prosecutorial 

immunity for his actions in presenting the case to the grand jury 

and prosecuting the plaintiffs at trial. See Imbler v. Pachtman, -- --

424 U.S. 409, 431 (1976) (prosecution); Gray~ Bell, 712 F.2d 

490, 502-03 (D.C. Cir. 1983) (grand jury), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 

1100 (1984). The United States is entitled to sovereign immunity; 

the general jurisdictional statutes pleaded by plaintiffs do not 

waive the United States' immunity. See Gilbert~ DaGrossa, 756 

F.2d 1455, 1458 (9th Cir. 1985) (28 U.S.C. § 1331); Garcia~ 

United States, 666 F.2d 960, 966 (5th Cir.) (U.S. Constitution), 

cert. denied, 459 U.S. 837 (1982); B.R. McKay~ Sons, Inc. v. 

United States, 633 F. Supp. 1290, 1295 (D. Utah 1986) (Declaratory 

Judgment Act). 

The decision of the district court is AFFIRMED. The mandate 

shall issue forthwith. 

2 

ENTERED FOR THE COURT 

Deanell Reece Tacha 

Circuit Judge 

Appellate Case: 89-4078 Document: 01019967121 Date Filed: 04/27/1990 Page: 2