The New Brighton mayor’s blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit when a police officer pulled her over early Sunday morning, according to charges filed against her Tuesday.
Valerie Johnson admitted to the offense when she made her first appearance on the charges Tuesday afternoon at the Ramsey County Law Enforcement Center.
Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of third-degree DWI during the hearing. A second count against her was dropped.
Johnson, 60, was pulled over at County Road E and Old Highway 8 at 1:55 a.m. Sunday by a New Brighton police officer who noted she had expired tabs and was traveling 54 mph in a 40-mph zone, legal documents say.
Johnson was slurring her speech and exhibited watery, bloodshot eyes during the traffic stop, so she was given a preliminary breath test.
Her blood-alcohol at the time was 0.17, according to the charges. The legal limit to drive is 0.08 in Minnesota.
Johnson was booked into jail and released from custody after her hearing late Tuesday afternoon.
She could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
City Manager Dean Lotter declined to comment, but on Tuesday night he issued a statement that Johnson had read at the beginning of the New Brighton City Council’s regularly scheduled meeting.
In the statement, Johnson acknowledged the arrest and her “reckless” conduct, apologized to the city’s staff and residents, and said “I am ready to accept the consequences of my actions, and I intend to take steps to ensure that I never make this mistake again.”
Johnson has been mayor of New Brighton since 2015.
She has no criminal history.