McConnell

FOR PUBLICATION

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

LAWRENCE RANDALL MCCONNELL; 

DEBORAH ELLEN MCCONNELL,

individually and as surviving No. 05-15025 parent of Joseph James McConnell, deceased, Plaintiffs-Appellants,  D.C. No.

CV-03-01886-JAT

v. OPINION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Defendant-Appellee.  Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Arizona James A. Teilborg, District Judge, Presiding

Argued and Submitted December 7, 2006—San Francisco, California

Filed March 8, 2007

Before: Thomas G. Nelson, Ronald M. Gould, and Consuelo M. Callahan, Circuit Judges.

Opinion by Judge Callahan; Concurrence by Judge Gould

2717 2720 MCCONNELL v. UNITED STATES

COUNSEL

David L. Abney of Skousen, Skousen, Gulbrandsen & Patience, P.C., Mesa, Arizona, for the plaintiffs-appellants.

Paul K. Charlton, United States Attorney, John Tuchi, Deputy Chief, James C. Hair Jr., Assistant U.S. Attorney, and Peter M. Lantka, Assistant U.S. Attorney (presented argument), Phoenix, Arizona, for the defendant-appellee.

OPINION

CALLAHAN, Circuit Judge:

The sole issue in this case is whether the…