The trial of Dr. Tomasz Kosowski, a former Florida plastic surgeon, began this week. He faces a first-degree murder charge in the presumed death of attorney Steven Cozzi. Kosowski decided to defend himself, and the case took an interesting turn.
The Alleged Crime
The state alleges that Kosowski committed the alleged murder in March 2023 inside a restroom at a Clearwater law office. It came during a civil dispute, per Court TV. The attorney’s body was never found, but Kosowski is accused of dumping it in a dumpster.
Having been through a number of legal representatives, Dr. Tomasz Roman Kosowski now represents himself, and the case won’t be heard by a jury.
According to FOX 13, Kosowski could face the death penalty if he is convicted, and as he’s getting a bench trial, the outcome of which depends on the judge, one might suggest that he be on his best behavior.
A Strange Conversation
The opening of court on Monday, which was shared by Law & Crime Trials on YouTube, found some rather stunned viewers because of the odd conversation that developed. Why is that? Well, from the start, Kosowski appeared to be testing the judge’s patience.
Judge Joseph A. Bulone, the circuit court judge, was presiding, and the case had barely started when Kosowski raised his hand and requested that the microphone be turned off. He said, “I believe there’s a mic from Court TV on air right now… Can we get rid of this?”
The reason he wanted the microphone off was because he is defending himself. He said, “Well, if I want to talk to myself about the case, then I reserve that right.”
The Perplexed Judge
The judge presiding over the case seemed a bit perplexed, saying, “I don’t think you’re going to be talking to anybody because you’re there by yourself.” Then he pointed out there wasn’t even a standby counsel at the table.
Next, he told the defendant, “So you’re there by yourself. So unless you’re going to talk to yourself, it’s really not going to pick up anything that you don’t want anybody to hear.”
As Dr. Tomasz Kosowski argued his point, they agreed he would raise his hand when he wanted to talk to himself, and someone would take the mic away.
But the judge got a bit sarcastic, saying, “I think you just want to hear your objections, which are kind of repetitive anyway.”
Raising His Hand
As the state prepared to call its first witness, Kosowski immediately raised his hand, and the warning to the judge came: “Your Honor, he is raising his hand. He’s appearing to raise a hand, and he wants to talk to himself now.”
Once again, the duo covered the ground over his objection to having a microphone that the media might be able to listen in on. Kosowski further objected to the microphone and claimed, “I’m talking to myself about the case right now.”
The argument continued, with Kosowski questioning the judge, asking, “How do you know I haven’t been talking to myself?”
Clearly frustrated, the judge eventually said, “Okay. But don’t talk to yourself too loudly because you might interrupt things.”
Viewers React
In the comments section of the video, some viewers thought that it wasn’t an effort to simply be amusing. In fact, some of agreed there’s nothing funny about the charges of murder and accusations of dumping the body of an attorney. So, some of them felt that the defendant was simply trying to exercise control.
One commenter wrote, “He HATES not having control,” while another person chimed in with, “Oh, how I love it when they represent themselves.”
Meanwhile, another viewer wrote, “I give him about five minutes in prison before he wises off to the wrong guy.”
The most useful comment could be this one: “Don’t annoy the judge. Remember, it’s a bench trial.”
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