MASON, Ohio — Weeks after a Cincinnati Open intern fell from a cart at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, a heavily redacted police report from Mason police lists one person as a suspect in the man's death.
Joshua Darst died after he fell from a cart on the tennis center property on August 18.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) confirmed to us Thursday they are investigating Darst's death and will release details after the investigation is complete.
A police report we obtained from Mason police through a public records request adds some details to what happened that night — but the 14-page report has over five pages fully redacted, including the name of a "suspect" listed on the first page of the report.
The "Related offense" listed for that suspect is aggravated vehicular homicide, specifically citing recklessness as part of the crime. Mason police told us no charges have been filed against that person yet and the investigation is still ongoing, which is why that information was redacted.
"Death investigations are normal when you have a fatality like this," Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell said, but declined to comment further or offer information on whether the suspect included in the report will face charges.
The two officer narratives that are unredacted say that when police and EMS arrived at the Lindner Family Tennis Center just before 11 p.m., Darst was lying on the ground bleeding from a head wound and barely conscious.
Nearby was what police described as a "yellow industrial 4-passenger cart" with a flat bed in the back.
WATCH: How those who knew Joshua Darst will remember him
EMS worked to attend to Darst and loaded him into an ambulance; one officer wrote that he checked Darst for injuries other than a head wound and discovered he had bruising and scratches on his legs and back.
Once the ambulance left to take Darst to West Chester Hospital, officers began questioning other people in the area, according to the police report.
"I began speaking with the other volunteers," wrote one Mason officer. "The supervisor advised Darst is an intern for the tournament and that [REDACTED] was driving the cart when Darst fell. Contact was made with [REDACTED] who was on scene and he advised that they were driving through the lot when he began having difficulty with the steering on the industrial cart. As they approached a curve in the lot, going toward the volunteer entrance, away from the operations building, Darst fell out."
You can look at the full report below:
Darst Police Report by webeditors
Another Mason officer, who was first to respond to the incident, wrote in his report that after Darst was taken to the hospital, he had photos taken of the area near where Darst fell and marked the tires of the cart.
"I then moved the cart from the lane and parked it near the forklifts," wrote that officer. "While moving the cart, it appeared to operate normally without any noticeable malfunctions."
Officers also noted they worked to determine whether any surveillance footage captured the moments when Darst fell from the cart.
"The footage captured the cart going through the area, but the footage was blurry and could barely display Darst falling off the cart," one officer wrote.
"Only one angle of the incident could be observed, but a tent blocked the view just prior to the subject falling off," a second officer wrote.
While several officers were involved in the investigation and submitted narratives that are in the police report, only two of those narratives are unredacted.
The day after Darst's death, the Cincinnati Open told us in a statement that a "tragic accident ... took the life of one of our interns and valued team members."
"This loss is deeply felt by our entire organization. Our hearts, thoughts and deepest sympathies are with his family, friends and all who knew and loved him," the statement says.
Mason police initially told us first responders were called to the Lindner Family Tennis Center just before 11 p.m. Monday, the day of the finals, for a man who fell off a cart near the facility's loading dock. The man — who we later learned was Darst — was taken to West Chester Hospital, police said.
