A Washington mother is accused of forcing her 6-year-old daughter to have hundreds of unnecessary surgeries

• Washington prosecutors are accusing a mom of putting her daughter through unnecessary surgeries.
• Court documents allege the adopted 6-year-old underwent 473 unnecessary medical procedures.
• Police found phrases like "funeral songs" in the mother's search history, charging documents say.

A Washington state-based mother is facing assault and domestic violence charges as authorities accuse her of putting her 6-year-old adopted daughter through unneeded surgeries.

Washington prosecutors alleged that 31-year-old Sophie Hartman forced the child to undergo at least 473 unnecessary medical procedures, according to charging documents filed on May 24. Hartman is charged with assault on a child in the second degree and domestic violence.

The list of procedures, which the charging document says date back to 2016, included the placement of a feeding tube directly into her stomach, a hormonal implant, and total parenteral nutrition (TPN) to flush her intestines, among others. Charging documents reviewed by Insider also state the child was forced to use leg braces and a wheelchair, despite doctors advising Hartman that her daughter did not need the treatments.

Hartman, who is white, adopted her two Black daughters from Zambia, according to a 2019 interview with local outlet KING 5. Both children were taken from her care on March 17, after police discovered search history on her iPad and iPhone that included "cochlear implants Black child," "how to get paid to take care of member of family with disability," "making a pretend model of hearing aid," and "funeral songs," according to court documents.

Court documents also allege that when Hartman's daughter was admitted to the Seattle Children's Hospital in February for a 16-day stay, doctors found her to be a healthy child and were alarmed when reviewing her extensive medical history.

Dr. Rebecca Wiester, the director of the Seattle Children's Hospital, wrote a letter to the state's Department of Children, Youth, and Families, prompting a deeper investigation into the 6-year-old's case. The letter, which was included in the case's probable-cause certification documents, stated doctors believed the child was facing "profound risk" at the hands of her caretaker.

"All the available evidence obtained during the course of her admission suggests [the child] is a healthy young 6-year-old who would continue to benefit from de-escalation of medical support and normalization of her childhood experience," Wiester wrote in the probable-cause documents.

The prosecution stated that since the child was weaned off all medication, she has made a strong recovery and no longer requires her feeding tube, TNP, wheelchair, or braces.

Court documents also allege that in a journal seized from Hartman's apartment, she wrote, "When it comes to suffering, I am a compulsive liar/exaggerator."

Hartman will be contesting the charges in court, according to a document released by her lawyers and reported by KING 5 News.

"The medical records in this case have been reviewed by Dr. Eli Newberger, a medical child abuse doctor with 40 years of experience, who has advised the King County Prosecuting Attorney that filing charges against Ms. Hartman is a 'miscarriage of justice,'" the statement reads.

Insider reached out to Hartman's lawyers for comment.