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A former Florida surgeon was indicted by a grand jury after authorities said he removed a man’s liver instead of his spleen.
The Office of the State Attorney for the First Judicial Circuit in Florida announced in a release Monday that Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky was charged with second-degree manslaughter after he allegedly removed the liver from 70-year-old Bill Bryan of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, in 2024 during a procedure at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital in Miramar Beach, Florida.
Prosecutors allege the surgery was scheduled to be a laparoscopic splenectomy, a minimally invasive procedure used to remove the spleen, but the removal of Bryan’s liver resulted in “catastrophic blood loss and the patient’s death on the operating table.”
A Walton County grand jury said the surgeon’s actions in the operating room “constituted criminal conduct under Florida law.”
FLORIDA SURGEON ACCUSED OF FATALLY REMOVING MAN’S LIVER INSTEAD OF SPLEEN HAS LICENSE SUSPENDED
Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky is behind bars in Walton County, Fla., after a grand jury indictment connected to the operating room death of an Alabama man. (Walton County Sheriff’s Office)
“Our duty is to follow the facts wherever they lead, without fear or favor,” Walton County Sheriff Michael Adkinson said in a news release. “The Grand Jury has spoken, and our responsibility is to ensure the charges are carried out through the proper legal process. Our thoughts remain with the victim’s family and their unspeakable loss.”
Adkinson did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Available court records did not list an attorney for Shaknovsky. It is unclear whether he has retained legal representation.
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Bill Bryan’s, left, liver was allegedly removed instead of his spleen, leading to his death. (Zarzaur Law Firm)
Following Bryan’s death in 2024, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners filed a court order to suspend Shaknovsky’s medical license, which was granted that same year. His Florida medical license was also suspended in 2024, followed by his New York license in 2025.
The Florida court order to suspend Shaknovsky’s license revealed he had previously made similar mistakes and lied to cover them up. In May 2023, he removed a portion of a patient’s pancreas instead of the adrenal gland. When the surgeon was approached about the mistake, he claimed the adrenal gland had “migrated” to a different part of the body.
Fox News Digital previously reported the patient in that case suffered “long-term, permanent harm.”
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A surgeon has been charged with second-degree manslaughter by a grand jury after allegedly removing a patient’s liver instead of his spleen. (iStock)
“Dr. Shaknovsky’s repeated egregious surgical errors resulted in significant patient harm coupled with his failure to take responsibility for these errors indicates that his reckless conduct is likely to continue,” the order said. “Therefore, Dr. Shaknovsky’s continued practice as an osteopathic physician presents an immediate, serious danger to the health, welfare, and safety of the public.”
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Shaknovsky is being held at the Walton County Jail and is awaiting his first court appearance. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 15 years in prison, according to the State Attorney’s Office.
Fox News Digital’s Lorraine Taylor and Stepheny Price contributed to this report.