A Florida surgeon has been indicted on a second-degree manslaughter charge after prosecutors say he removed a patient's liver instead of his spleen during a 2024 operation, causing catastrophic blood loss that killed the man on the operating table. The case, already one of the most shocking medical error allegations in the state in recent years, took a criminal turn this week when a Walton County grand jury returned the indictment against Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky.
According to The New York Times, the patient was 70-year-old William Bryan of Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He died on Aug. 21, 2024, during what was supposed to be a laparoscopic splenectomy, a procedure to remove the spleen. Instead, authorities allege Shaknovsky removed Bryan's liver, which led to massive bleeding and his death in the operating room.
The sheriff's office said the grand jury found probable cause to conclude that the surgeon's actions in the operating room amounted to criminal conduct under Florida law. State Attorney Ginger Bowden Madden said in a statement that prosecutors have a duty to follow the facts "without fear or favor," while Walton County Sheriff Michael Adkinson called the case both tragic and deeply serious. Shaknovsky was arrested Monday and booked into the Walton County Jail.
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The allegations against Shaknovsky had already triggered intense scrutiny long before the indictment. After the surgery, Florida health regulators moved to suspend his medical license on an emergency basis. The Alabama Medical Licensure Commission also temporarily suspended his Alabama license.
Florida's online license verification system now lists his osteopathic physician license as retired, with no current practice location in the state.
Investigators and regulators have described the error in stark terms. A 2024 emergency suspension order cited in later reporting said the spleen and its attachments were left untouched in their normal position, while the removed organ had been labeled as a spleen even though it was actually the liver. Medical investigators alleged Shaknovsky failed to recognize the mistake even after signs that something had gone badly wrong and then falsely identified the organ after the procedure.
The criminal charge raises the stakes dramatically. Under Florida law, second-degree manslaughter is a felony that can carry a prison sentence if a conviction is secured.
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Tags: Florida, Surgery, Doctor, Manslaughter
