Dr. Shaknovsky Lawsuit: Cover-Up, Charges, and License Actions

The lawsuit against Dr. Thomas Shaknovsky is a wrongful death and medical malpractice case filed in Florida by the widow of William “Bill” Bryan, a 70-year-old Alabama man who died on August 21, 2024, after Shaknovsky allegedly removed his liver during what was supposed to be a splenectomy. The complaint, filed January 30, 2025, in the Circuit Court of Walton County, names Shaknovsky, Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast, its parent company, Shaknovsky’s employer GenesisCare, and four nurses, and accuses the hospital and staff of falsifying records to conceal what happened. A Walton County grand jury later indicted Shaknovsky on second-degree manslaughter on April 13, 2026.¹²

What Happened in the Operating Room

Bryan underwent a scheduled laparoscopic splenectomy at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast in Miramar Beach, Florida. The Florida Department of Health’s emergency suspension order states the surgery was scheduled after 5 p.m. with what staff called a “skeletal crew,” and operating room personnel had raised concerns beforehand about Shaknovsky’s experience and staffing.³

When Shaknovsky opened the abdomen, an enlarged colon burst out and obscured his view. After staff cleared the field, he identified a pulsing blood vessel, said “that’s scary,” and fired a surgical stapler around it. Bryan began hemorrhaging and went into cardiac arrest. As the rest of the team performed chest compressions, Shaknovsky continued dissecting in an abdomen filled with blood, removed an organ, identified it as the spleen, and told a nurse to label it that way. Staff who saw the organ recognized it as a liver and were, according to the suspension order, “shocked” by his identification. One staff member reportedly felt sick.⁴

Bryan could not be resuscitated. Shaknovsky told staff the cause of death was a ruptured splenic artery aneurysm and instructed that the organ be sent to pathology labeled as a spleen. Pathology later confirmed the removed organ was an intact liver. An autopsy found Bryan’s spleen still in place, his liver missing, and his inferior vena cava severed. The medical examiner found no evidence of a ruptured splenic artery aneurysm and determined the cause of death was exsanguination and surgical removal of the liver.⁵ The state’s suspension order noted that the liver and spleen are distinct in “size, color, and location,” and that Shaknovsky’s operative report described dissecting structures that were never actually touched.³

Who Is Being Sued

Beverly Burke Bryan, represented by Pensacola firm Zarzaur Law, names seven defendants:

Thomas J. Shaknovsky, D.O.
GenesisCare USA of Florida, LLC (formerly 21st Century Oncology), identified in the complaint as Shaknovsky’s employer
Sacred Heart Health System, Inc., doing business as Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast
Ascension Health, Inc., the parent company
Four nurses: Kathleen B. Goebel, R.N.; Chelsea Corral, R.N.; Kathleen A. Montag, R.N.; and Tammy Nelson, R.N.

The complaint alleges medical malpractice, wrongful death, and non-medical negligence tied to the hospital’s credentialing, administration, and oversight of Shaknovsky. It seeks damages exceeding $50,000 and demands a jury trial.¹

According to the complaint, the hospital allowed Shaknovsky to operate despite having been “previously notified that Dr. Shaknovsky was unskilled” and aware of “many previous instances of adverse events.” Hospital management, the complaint alleges, frequently closed internal reports about surgeon negligence before any real review could occur, treating Shaknovsky as a “profit center” who kept generating revenue.⁶

A hospital spokesperson told NBC News that Shaknovsky “was never a Sacred Heart Emerald Coast employee,” meaning he held surgical privileges at the facility but was employed by GenesisCare.⁷ GenesisCare said its “thoughts and prayers are with the family” and declined to comment on pending litigation. Ascension Sacred Heart has said it does not discuss active litigation.⁸

The Cover-Up Allegations

The most striking claim in the lawsuit is that hospital staff and leadership worked to hide what actually happened in the operating room. The complaint identifies hospital CEO Trey Abshier and chief medical officer Dr. C. Joseph Bacani and alleges they went along with Shaknovsky’s account that he had removed Bryan’s spleen. It says Abshier had been briefed on Shaknovsky’s patient safety issues when he started as CEO in July 2024, and that Bacani was informed the day of the surgery that pathology had identified the removed organ as a liver.¹

The complaint further alleges that staff and administrators falsified the death certificate and other state-required death records, lied to the medical examiner’s office, and pressured Beverly Bryan not to authorize an autopsy.⁹ Nurse Tammy Nelson is specifically alleged to have labeled the removed liver as a “spleen” at Shaknovsky’s direction, though the complaint acknowledges that “expecting a nurse to turn in a surgeon has inherent challenges.”¹

Where the Civil Case Stands

As of March 2026, attorneys were still conducting discovery and depositions, and no trial date had been set. Plaintiff’s attorney Joe Zarzaur said he expected one “soon.”¹⁰

Depositions have already produced material both sides intend to use. In one, Shaknovsky said he “couldn’t tell the difference” between the liver and the spleen because he was so upset, and that he was “mentally compromised” when he wrote the postoperative notes misidentifying the organ.⁵ Another deposition revealed that after the surgery Shaknovsky asked to go to the hospital lab and spent roughly ten to twelve minutes alone with the removed organ and a lab technician. Zarzaur argued that showed Shaknovsky had a “sober” opportunity to identify the organ as a liver by inspecting anatomical landmarks, including the site where Bryan’s previously removed gallbladder had been.¹⁰

The Criminal Case Running Alongside

The civil suit is not the only proceeding. On April 13, 2026, a Walton County grand jury indicted Shaknovsky on one count of second-degree manslaughter after a two-year investigation coordinated through the Office of the State Attorney for the First Judicial Circuit. He was arrested that morning in Miramar Beach and held at the Walton County Jail on $75,000 bond.²³

Shaknovsky has pleaded not guilty and was released on bond. No criminal trial date has been publicly reported as of mid-2026.¹¹

Prior Incidents the Suit Points To

The complaint’s claim that the hospital knew of “many previous instances of adverse events” rests on earlier surgeries at the same facility.

On May 12, 2023, Shaknovsky performed a laparoscopic left adrenalectomy at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast and removed the tail of the pancreas instead of the adrenal gland, causing an abscess and infection. The patient survived. The claim was settled for $400,000, with an additional $33,369 in defense costs. The settlement was finalized on August 13, 2024, eight days before the Bryan surgery.¹²

On July 23, 2023, according to the Florida Board of Medical Examiners and reporting by the Miami Herald, Shaknovsky performed a bowel resection instead of a scheduled ileostomy, causing a perforation; the patient was moved to the ICU and died.¹³ WUSF identified this patient as Dorothy Dorsett, 76, of Miramar Beach, who died on August 4, 2023, after developing sepsis following surgery to remove a tumor in her digestive tract. The state Agency for Health Care Administration found that Shaknovsky and other physicians failed to properly use diagnostic testing and delayed imaging that could have helped treat her sepsis, though the agency did not assign criminal liability. A separate lawsuit tied to Dorsett’s death is ongoing, and Shaknovsky has denied wrongdoing in court filings.¹¹

License Actions in Three States

In the months after Bryan’s death, medical regulators moved against Shaknovsky’s licenses in every state where action has been reported.

Florida: The state Surgeon General suspended his license in September 2024 through an emergency order citing imminent danger to the public. Shaknovsky retired his Florida license voluntarily on November 14, 2024, and the state’s practitioner profile lists his license status as “Retired.”⁸¹⁴
Alabama: The Alabama Medical Licensure Commission temporarily suspended his license in October 2024, stating his practice “may constitute an immediate danger to his patients and the public.” On November 25, 2024, the commission accepted his full surrender of the license.¹⁵
New York: The New York State Department of Health issued a temporary suspension on May 20, 2025, citing Florida’s finding that his practice posed “an imminent danger to the health of its people.” That suspension remains in effect pending professional misconduct proceedings.¹⁶

1
Zarzaur Law. Civil Lawsuit Against Thomas J. Shaknovsky D.O. Sacred Heart Health System Inc.
2
Walton County Sheriff’s Office. Walton County Grand Jury Indicts Doctor in Operating Room Death of Alabama Man
3
CBS News. Doctor Indicted Liver Spleen Fatal Surgery Thomas Shaknovsky
4
MedPage Today. Special Reports Features
5
NBC News. Florida Surgeon Removed Wrong Organ Traumatized Deposition
6
Zarzaur Law. Zarzaur Law Civil Lawsuit Against Thomas Shaknovsky Et Al
7
NBC News. Florida Doctor Indicted Allegedly Removing Patients Liver Instead of Spleen
8
Miami Herald. Lawsuit Filed Against Dr. Shaknovsky and Ascension Sacred Heart
9
Pensacola News Journal. Dr. Shaknovsky Hospital Sued for Removing Mans Liver Killing Him
10
1819 News. Deposition Reveals Surgeon Examined Specimen in Death Case Involving Mistaken Liver Removal
11
WUSF. Florida Surgeon Arrested in Organ Error Also Scrutinized in Earlier Patient Death
12
Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. Medical Malpractice Closed Claim Report
13
Miami Herald. Florida Doctor Accused Fatal Surgical Mistake
14
Florida Department of Health. Practitioner Profile – Thomas J. Shaknovsky
15
WBRC. Florida Doctor Accused Fatal Surgical Mistake Surrenders Alabama Medical License
16
New York State Department of Health. Physician Details – Thomas J. Shaknovsky