Florida Doctor Arrested For Manslaughter After Allegedly Taking Wrong Organ During Surgery

The doctor removed the man's liver instead of his spleen, as blood loss prompted the 70-year-old's death.

A Florida doctor is facing manslaughter charges for allegedly removing the wrong organ during surgery.

According to ABC 7, Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky was indicted for second-degree manslaughter by a grand jury for the fatal surgery, which occurred in August 2024. Prosecutors alleged that the botched operation led to “catastrophic blood loss,” resulting in the death of a 70-year-old man.

The senior citizen, who hails from Alabama, came in expecting the removal of his spleen. Instead, Shaknovsky removed his liver, with the man dying on the operating table. The patient’s widow revealed his identity to NBC News as Bill Bryan.

For the deadly mistake, Shaknovsky was detained on April 13 in Miramar Beach, Florida. The 44-year-old physician was transported to Walton County Jail ahead of his hearing the following day.

The legal filing detailed that Shaknovsky recommended the surgery after the 70-year-old Bryan arrived at Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital Emerald Coast with abdominal pain. After further inspection revealed a “suspected enlarged spleen,” Shaknovsky advised the old man to let him remove the organ.

The filing noted that Shaknovsky “continued to pressure” the man into agreeing to the operation, although Bryan wished to return home to Alabama. The patient also went into cardiac arrest during the procedure. The legal document mentioned that Shaknovsky proceeded with the operation anyway.

“Dr. Shaknovsky removed an organ he believed to be the spleen, but due to his shock and the chaos, he was unable to properly identify the organ,” the filing states.

Shaknovsky listed his cause of death as a ruptured splenic artery aneurysm. However, an autopsy later found “no evidence” of the issue.

Following the deadly procedure, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners filed a court order to suspend Shaknovsky’s medical license. It was subsequently suspended in Florida and New York as well.

Now, the elderly man’s family remains at a loss over the preventable death. Furthermore, they still wonder how such grave malpractice could happen.

“When I tell people what happened, it still sounds too awful to be true that that could happen,” explained Byran’s widow, Beverly Bryan. “I still have trouble believing it happened myself. Can you imagine?”