ATTLEBORO - A jury has awarded a $5.8 million verdict against a local doctor and an orthopedic group sued by the family of a Rhode Island man whose left leg had to be amputated below the knee after originally being operated on for a broken ankle.

Dr. Michael Feldman and Orthopedic Group, which has offices in Pawtucket and Attleboro, were named as defendants in the malpractice lawsuit filed by the wife of William W. Layton of Riverside, R.I.

Feldman also has staff privileges as Sturdy Memorial Hospital.

The case was decided by a Rhode Island jury in November.

With interest, the total award will amount to $8.9 million, according to attorney Amato A. DeLuca, who along with Miriam Weizenbaum represented Layton's wife in the case. The defendants can seek a new trial or appeal, and the judge can reduce or overturn the award, DeLuca said.

Feldman's attorney, Micheal Sarli, declined to comment on the verdict but said post-trial motions have been filed.

Sarli said Feldman is a highly trained, board certified doctor who has twice served in the military in Kosovo and Baghdad, Iraq, where he treated wounded soldiers as a member of the Army Reserve.

Feldman operated on Layton's ankle in February 2001 in Roger Williams Hospital after the Navy veteran and former Veterans Administration official broke his ankle in a fall at home, court documents say.

Because Layton had diabetes and suffered from poor circulation the doctor correctly decided to wait a week before performing surgery, DeLuca said. Layton had developed a condition called "fracture blisters" as the ankle swelled.

Although the blisters had worsened, the plaintiff's lawyers argued, Feldman continued with the surgery without informing Layton of the risks.

Ultimately, Layton went to another surgeon, who discovered that his left foot had become gangrenous. The leg was amputated below the knee in April.

Layton died Sept 5, 2007, of a heart attack unrelated to the surgery.