ATTORNEY RALPH A. MONACO, II

Ralph A. Monaco, II is a lifelong resident of Raytown, Missouri.  He graduated from Rockhurst University in 1978, summa cum laude, with degrees in history and political science.  In 1981, he received his juris doctorate degree from U.M.K.C. School of Law.  He is a charter member of Monaco, Sanders, Racine, Powell & Reidy L.C.  He has been engaged in the private practice of law for over 36 years, and he is a member of the Missouri Bar and Western District of Missouri Federal District Court.  His peers in the legal community have recognized his legal ability and ethical standards by bestowing upon him an AV rating, the highest rating given to lawyers.  His legal work consists of a far ranging practice from probate administration to estate planning, from civil litigation to personal injury and worker’s compensation practice; from business organizations to corporate dissolutions; from real estate transactions to contract law; from family law to guardianship and juvenile court proceedings; from entertainment law to business management; and from criminal to traffic law defense.

Mr. Monaco has been active in the political and civic communities. He formerly served on the Raytown School Board, and served as School Board Vice-President and as Board President. He was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives, District #49 in 1996, and he went on to serve four terms in the House, including serving as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, before he was ineligible to run for reelection because of term limits. Mr. Monaco is past President of the Jackson County Historical Society, and he currently serves as a member of the Society’s Board of Directors.  He also currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the National Frontier Three Trails Museum, and is an active participant in Jackson County Heritage Programs and Museums.  Mr. Monaco has also served on the Board of Directors of the Keith Worthington Chapter of ALS, Board of Trustees of Elmwood Cemetery, Board of Director of the Rice-Tremonti House, Park Lane Foundation and Board of Director of Stepping Stones.

Mr. Monaco has received numerous public service awards and recognition. These have included the Acorn Life Membership in PTA, Missouri Judiciary Legislator of the Year Award, the Missouri Bar Legislator of the Year Award, the Association of Retarded Citizens of Missouri Legislator of the Year Award, Friend of the ARC Legislator of the Year Award, Champion of Justice Award from the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, NEA Legislator of the Year Award, the Associate and Probate Judges of Missouri Legislator of the Year Award, the Outstanding Service Award from the Jackson County Heritage Programs & Museums, Making History Come Alive Award from the Jackson County Historical Society, recipient of the Pioneer of Harrodsburg, Kentucky Award, Lifetime Membership Award in the Raytown Historical Society, Volunteer of the Year Award from Jackson County Parks & Recreation, Phi Alpha Delta law fraternity Bovine Scoop Award, and Phi Alpha Delta Brown Bottle recipient as PAD member of the year.

Within the local bar, Mr. Monaco has developed a strong reputation for producing and directing historical retrials in partnership between the Jackson County Historical Society and U.M.K.C. School of Law CLE Program.  These historical retrials have included the recreation of the 1883 trial of Frank James for the Winston train robbery and murder, the 1910 murder trial of Dr. C. Bennett Hyde for the alleged murder of Kansas City philanthropist Thomas H. Swope, and the 1899 train robbery trial of the “son of a bandit” Jesse James, Jr.  Currently, this partnership has scheduled another historic retrial.  In May 2015, the 1931 trial of Myrtle Bennett for the alleged murder of her husband John G. Bennett over a game of bridge will resume center-stage.

Mr. Monaco continues to remain very active with historical organizations and portrayals.  He has a passion for living history and Civil War reenacting.  For over 25 years, he has portrayed Abram Comingo, a 19th Century attorney and Congressman.  His other first person performances has included Manuel de Lisa, a Spanish fur trader who helped outfit the Lewis & Clark Expedition, James Slover, Frank James’ defense attorney, Edgar Allan Poe, poet and master of the macabre, George Caleb Bingham, the Missouri 19th Century artist and politician, Col. Thomas H. Swope, Kansas City philanthropist and alleged murder victim, Alexander William Doniphan, Mexican War Veteran, Attorney and Statesman and Jesse E. James, the son of the bandit Jesse James. 

Mr. Monaco is also the author of six non-fiction books:  The Strange Story of Col. Swope & Dr. Hyde (Two Trails Publishing, Independence, Mo. 2010), Son of a Bandit, Jesse James & The Leeds Gang (Monaco Publishing, LLC, Independence, Mo. 2012), Blood on the Streets: The Civil War Comes to Jackson County, Missouri, August 1861 (Monaco Publishing, LLC, Independence, Mo. 2012), and Scattered to the Four Winds (Monaco Publishing, LLC and Jackson County Historical Society, Independence, Mo. 2013), Son of a Bandit, Jesse James & The Leeds Gang, Last Hand at Park Manor (Monaco Publishing, LLC and Jackson County Historical Society, Independence, Mo. 2015) and The Bandit Rides Again, Jesse James, Whiskeyhead Ryan & the Glendale Train Robbery (Monaco Publishing, LLC and Jackson County Historical Society, Independence, Mo. 2017). He received the coveted John Newman Edwards Literary Award from the James Farm for his book, Son of a Bandit, Jesse James & The Leeds Gang. His gripping tale of the history of the tragedy surrounding General Order No. 11 and martial law in Jackson County, Missouri during the American Civil War in his book Scattered to the Four Winds was recognized as the 2013 book of the year by the Jackson County Historical Society.  His latest work, The Bandit Rides Again, Jesse James, Whiskeyhead Ryan & the Glendale Train Robbery garnered the Don Hale Literary Award.

Contact Ralph A. Monaco, II: 816.523.2400, Ext. 1