FARMINGTON — A Farmington attorney who was in a motorcycle crash last week died on Monday after he was taken off life support.
Ray Archambeau, 55, crashed while driving his motorcycle in Aztec on Sept. 4.
Archambeau went into a coma after the accident and his two older sisters made the decision to take him off life support on Monday, said Lauri Archambeau, his sister.
Archambeau was a public defender in San Juan County for more than 10 years, San Juan County Chief Public Defender Christian Hatfield said.
“He tried a case days before he died, and his client was cleared of all charges,” Hatfield said. “He was a trial lawyer until the end.”
Archambeau was driving his motorcycle east on Aztec Boulevard when he crashed it into a car stopped at the Oliver Drive intersection.
Archambeau, who was a diabetic, had low blood sugar, which caused him to crash, according to the police report.
Archambeau lived in Bloomfield and was an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe.
His family and colleagues said he planned his life around motorcycles and the law.
“If he couldn’t ride his motorcycle and practice law, he said he didn’t want to be around,” Hatfield said.
During his lifetime, Archambeau was involved in several motorcycle accidents. Two of the accidents happened near Farmington and he wasn’t injured, Lauri said.
About two years ago, Archambeau was hospitalized for
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several days after a serious motorcycle crash near Crownpoint, Lauri said.
“That one should have killed him but he walked away,” she said.
Archambeau also worked as a Farmington city attorney.
“He spent the majority of his adult life trying to help the people of San Juan County,” Hatfield said. “He was known and respected in all courtrooms, especially by the thousands of people he represented.”
A memorial service is planned for 2 p.m. Friday at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Farmington.
Archambeau’s organs were donated, and his cremated remains will be scattered in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Lauri said.