Florida surgeon turned Lyft driver arrested for manslaughter after removing wrong organ

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I just heard this unbelievable story – a surgeon in Florida is facing manslaughter charges! Apparently, he accidentally removed a patient’s liver instead of their spleen during surgery, and sadly, the patient died right there on the operating table. It’s just… shocking and heartbreaking.

Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky was arrested in Miramar Beach, Florida, and taken to Walton County Jail. Police stopped a Lyft car he was driving, where he had been working as a driver for over a year, and took him into custody.

The retired surgeon seemed confused when he was arrested and asked why he was being taken into custody. A deputy explained that he was being charged with second-degree manslaughter. According to the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, Dr. Shaknovsky was informed about the charge a week prior to the arrest and had plenty of time to surrender himself with his lawyer’s help, but didn’t.

The charge explained

NBC News reported that a tragic medical error occurred on August 21, 2024, when a surgeon mistakenly removed a patient’s liver instead of his spleen during a minimally invasive surgery. The patient, William Bryan, suffered massive blood loss and died during the procedure.

Following a surgical error, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners ordered Shaknovsky’s medical license suspended. It was later revoked, and he subsequently lost his licenses to practice medicine in both Florida and New York.

Court documents also claim Shaknovsky committed two instances of medical malpractice. In one case, a patient died after Shaknovsky mistakenly removed the pancreas instead of the left adrenal gland.

If convicted, Shaknovksy faces up to fifteen years in prison.

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2026-04-25 18:18