The executive director of the Minnesota DFL Party was arrested Saturday on suspicion of drunken driving after hitting two parked cars, according to a police report.
Corey Day, who has been with the party since October 2011, was still in Hennepin County jail late Monday afternoon.
According to a police report, police were called to Lyndale Avenue S. and W. 26th Street in Minneapolis Saturday night on a report of an accident involving a possible drunk driver and found two parked vehicles had been struck. Day, 36, was arrested and booked for drunken driving.
According to public records, Day pleaded guilty to a charge of drunken driving in 2009.
DFL Party chair Ken Martin said the weekend violation will not affect Day's work at the state party.
"As far as I'm concerned, it is a personal issue. This didn't happen on work time," Martin said. "It's obviously a lapse in judgment and a mistake that he made. And I don't condone it."
He said he was not aware of Day's previous record. The party does not routinely run criminal background checks on employees, nor does he specifically ask about arrest records during the interview process, he said.
"We hire folks based on their skill set," Martin said.
Day is a longtime Democratic activist both in Minnesota and in Florida.
A call to Day's cellphone was not returned Monday.
Staff writer Matt McKinney contributed to this report. Rachel E. Stassen-Berger • Twitter: @rachelsb
