CLEARWATER, Fla. (Court TV) — The question hung in the air of a Florida courtroom: “Do you exercise?”
Tomasz Kosowski, a 47-year-old plastic surgeon representing himself on a charge of first-degree murder, had asked the judge to allow volunteers from the courtroom to help with a demonstration during his trial. According to www.courttv.com, the request was denied. The judge did not allow it.
Kosowski has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Steven Cozzi, a 41-year-old attorney who disappeared in March 2023. At the time of his disappearance, Cozzi was representing a group of people being sued by Kosowski. Prosecutors say Kosowski, angry and frustrated over the lawsuit, killed the victim in a bathroom at Cozzi’s law office.
The case has drawn attention not only for the allegations but for the unusual procedural turn: a surgeon acting as his own lawyer in a murder trial. Court TV reported that Kosowski, appearing in court on Sept. 22, 2026, made the request for volunteers as part of his defense presentation.
The judge’s refusal is the latest setback for a defendant who has chosen to navigate a complex legal process without counsel. Legal observers note that self-representation in a capital case is rare and fraught with risk, but the source material does not include further comment from the judge or from Kosowski on the ruling.
What is known is the timeline. Cozzi vanished in March 2023. His body has not been recovered, according to the source article. The charge against Kosowski is first-degree murder, which in Florida carries a possible sentence of life in prison or death. Kosowski has entered a plea of not guilty.
Prosecutors have not yet laid out the full evidence in open court, but they have publicly alleged that Kosowski’s motive was the lawsuit Cozzi was handling against him. The source states that Kosowski was “angry and frustrated” over the litigation, and that the killing allegedly took place in a bathroom at Cozzi’s office. No further details of the alleged crime scene have been released in the source material.
The defense, so far, has not offered a public narrative beyond the not-guilty plea. Kosowski’s decision to represent himself means he has also been making his own legal arguments, including the request for demonstration volunteers that was denied.
What remains unknown is substantial. The source does not specify what the demonstration was meant to show, nor does it name the judge who denied the request. It is also unclear whether the trial is ongoing or has concluded, as the source article focuses solely on the Sept. 22, 2026 courtroom moment. The location of Cozzi’s body, if any, is not stated.
For now, the case continues to move through the courts. The denial of the volunteer request is a procedural note, but it underscores the unusual path Kosowski has chosen. Whether the trial proceeds with further self-representation or whether a lawyer steps in remains to be seen. The next scheduled hearing or ruling has not been reported in the source.
What is clear is that a man accused of killing an attorney is now standing in a courtroom, asking for help from the public — and being told no.