Family sues Kansas City Chiefs doctor who struck, killed ‘Good Samaritan’ on I-70

Family members of Robert Piper, a Blue Springs man who died in November while he tried to help teenagers involved in a highway wreck, have filed a lawsuit against the Kansas City Chiefs doctor who struck him with his pickup truck.

The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the doctor, Michael E. Monaco, in Jackson County Court on Wednesday, records show. The doctor is accused of failing to drive with due care after returning home from the Chiefs’ overseas matchup in Germany against the Miami Dolphins.

The lawsuit named Michael Monaco as the sole defendant.

Reached by phone Thursday afternoon, attorney Ralph Monaco, brother-in-law and personal counsel to Michael Monaco, said the crash was a very emotional and difficult experience. He called it “an unavoidable accident.”

He added that Michael Monaco and the Pipers were all victims of a criminal act in that the crash happened because the teenagers had stolen a vehicle and crashed it on the highway.

“He is devastated. It’s devastating for the family as well. The Pipers are victims too,” Ralph Monaco said.

His lawyer said Michael Monaco was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the crash and is not the subject of a criminal investigation. He added that he was not fatigued, as the lawsuit alleges, and the crash had nothing to do with his employment as a doctor for the Chiefs.

A spokesman for the Chiefs did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday afternoon.

The crash happened on Nov. 6, around 1:45 a.m., sending Independence police officers to be dispatched to investigate the wreck near Interstate 70 and Interstate 470.

Police determined that Piper, 50, had come upon a wrecked Chevrolet Equinox and stopped to help.

The Equinox was later found to have been stolen. It wrecked when its driver left the roadway, struck a rock embankment and was redirected back into the lanes of traffic, according to police. One of the people in the car also died at the scene.

Piper was assisting the crash victims when he was struck by a passing Ford pickup truck driven by Michael Monaco.

No citations or criminal charges were filed against Michael Monaco after the crash.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday alleges Michael Monaco failed to pay careful enough attention to the road. Based on a review of traffic cameras, the lawsuit says, there were eight other vehicles that approached and were able to navigate the scene during the approximately three minutes Piper was attempting to help those in the crashed car.

It also says there were no marks on the roadway or other signs that Michael Monaco applied his brakes before impact.

The lawsuit is brought on behalf of Robert Piper’s widow and two adult daughters. Mike Rader, an attorney representing the family in the case, said Thursday that the Pipers were requesting privacy as they continue to mourn.

In a statement shared with The Star, they expressed “heartfelt gratitude for the outpouring of support we have received.”

“Robert’s death has left an irreplaceable void in our lives,” the family said in the statement. “His kind-hearted nature and dedication to helping others, especially in his last moments, reflected the very essence of his character.

Our fervent hope is that those responsible for this avoidable tragedy will be held fully accountable.”

The wrongful death lawsuit brought against Michael Monaco comes roughly three years after another member of the Kansas City Chiefs organization was involved in a high-profile crash.

In February 2021, Britt Reid, a former assistant coach, struck two vehicles stopped on the side of an entrance ramp along Interstate 435 near the team’s practice facility. A then-5-year-old girl who was in one of the vehicles was seriously injured.

Unlike the case involving Michael Monaco, Britt Reid was accused of driving while under the influence of alcohol. The Chiefs reached a financial agreement with the family of the girl in the Britt Reid case.

Britt Reid was convicted in Jackson County Circuit Court of driving while intoxicated, leading to a serious physical injury. He was sentenced to three years in prison.