ST. CLOUD, Minnesota — Minnesota state Representative Dan Wolgamott, a Democrat who represents St. Cloud in the state House, was arrested on Wednesday night on suspicion of driving while impaired after his vehicle struck a legally parked car and injured the man sitting inside it, St. Cloud police said. Wolgamott, 36, was booked into the Stearns County Jail shortly after 9 p.m. on Wednesday, November 11, and was still being held without bail on Thursday, according to jail records reported by Minnesota news outlets.
Police said the crash began as a traffic call. Officers responded at about 7:50 p.m. on Wednesday to a report of a stalled vehicle blocking traffic in the 1300 block of 13th Street North in St. Cloud, a residential street in the city in central Minnesota. Investigators determined that a vehicle driven by Wolgamott was travelling east on 13th Street North when it struck a legally parked vehicle, St. Cloud police told WJON News.
Source: WJON News
A 37-year-old St. Cloud man was inside the parked vehicle when it was hit. He was taken to St. Cloud Hospital with injuries described by police as non-life-threatening. Police have not released the injured man's name, and no update on his condition had been published by Thursday afternoon.
Officers at the scene determined that alcohol was a factor and that Wolgamott was allegedly impaired, police said. He was arrested on suspicion of driving while impaired and taken to the Stearns County Jail. Jail records show he was booked just after 9 p.m., KFGO reported, on allegations that include criminal vehicular operation causing bodily harm.
Source: KFGO
Held without bail, with formal charges still to come
The Stearns County jail log lists three DWI-related allegations against Wolgamott, including criminal vehicular operation involving bodily harm — among the most serious impaired-driving allegations under Minnesota law, because it involves a crash in which another person was hurt. As of Thursday morning he had not yet been formally charged, and Minnesota outlets reported that a charging decision from the county attorney could come as early as Thursday. He remained in custody without bail while that decision was pending.
No statement from Wolgamott was included in the initial reporting. WCCO reported it had reached out to both the representative and St. Cloud police for more information. The allegations are suspicions at this stage: an arrest is not a conviction, and Wolgamott is presumed innocent unless and until the state proves a charge in court.
Everything in this report about Wednesday night comes from St. Cloud police accounts and Stearns County jail records as reported by WJON, KFGO, the Star Tribune and WCCO. No formal charges had been filed when those reports were published, and the injured man's account has not been made public.
A second DWI case in just over three years
This is Wolgamott's second impaired-driving arrest in a little more than three years. He was arrested on July 7, 2023, in Kanabec County in east-central Minnesota, where a breath test registered 0.09 — just over Minnesota's 0.08 legal limit — according to court reporting. He pleaded guilty later that year, in September 2023, to a misdemeanour drunken-driving offence and was placed on probation for two years. Court records reported by Minnesota outlets show he completed a chemical health assessment, attended an eight-hour educational class and a Mothers Against Drunk Driving victim impact panel, and paid a $400 fine.
An outgoing lawmaker from a St. Cloud district
Wolgamott represents Minnesota House District 14B, which covers St. Cloud and parts of Benton, Sherburne and Stearns counties. First elected in 2018, he has served in the House since 2019 and is in his fourth term. He did not seek re-election in this year's midterms, so his time in office is set to end in January, when newly elected lawmakers are sworn in. Earlier this year he sought his party's endorsement for state auditor but did not receive it, WJON reported. The arrest therefore lands in the final weeks of his legislative career, rather than in the middle of a campaign.
What happens next
The next step belongs to prosecutors in Stearns County, who must decide whether to file formal charges — and if so, whether the case is charged as criminal vehicular operation, which can carry far heavier penalties than a standard DWI when bodily harm is involved, or as a lesser offence. A first court appearance would follow any filing. It was not yet clear on Thursday whether House leaders would comment or take any step regarding his committee work in the remaining weeks of his term. Awaaz Punjab will update this story when the charging decision is filed.