A Clark County woman last week became the fourth person arrested in an expanding child sex abuse investigation that has already implicated her husband, a former pediatrician and another Vancouver area man.
Anna May Hartley, 41, was arrested by Vancouver police on Monday, May 11, and booked into the Clark County Jail on charges of first-degree trafficking and first-degree child molestation. During her first court appearance Tuesday, Clark County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Megan Hamilton Finch described the allegations as part of an “ongoing pattern of very severe child sexual abuse” while requesting bail be set at $500,000.
Prosecutors argued Hartley posed a danger to children. Finch told the court Hartley, like her husband, Chad Hartley, allegedly transported a 6-year-old girl to the home of one of the accused abusers and had recently supervised another young child. Defense attorney Autumn Nigro requested bail be reduced to $50,000. Clark County Superior Court Judge Tsering D. Cornell ultimately set bail at $300,000 and ordered intensive supervision if Hartley is released.
Appearing through a video feed from the jail, Hartley answered procedural questions from the judge but did not address the allegations.
The investigation began in February after the Vancouver Police Department received a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children alleging child sex abuse material had been uploaded to Discord from an IP address linked to Chad Hartley, according to court records.
Investigators later discovered images depicting nude minors, sexually explicit material involving Chad Hartley and AI-generated child sexual abuse material, court documents state. Authorities also alleged Chad Hartley served as an administrator of online chat rooms used to distribute child pornography.
Chad Hartley, who previously worked as a medical assistant at PeaceHealth Fisher’s Landing clinic in Vancouver, was arrested April 29 after law enforcement officers stopped him following his departure from work.
Interviews with Chad and Anna Hartley led investigators to another suspect, Dr. Michael Wilmington, a longtime pediatrician who most recently worked for Kaiser Permanente in Salmon Creek. Investigators described Wilmington as an “extreme threat to children” and accused him of child molestation.
Wilmington, 61, spent more than three decades practicing medicine before being terminated by Kaiser Permanente on April 30. He later died by a suspected suicide in Lewis County as the criminal investigation intensified.
According to court records, Chad Hartley and Wilmington became acquainted through a nude bowling event and shared a nudist lifestyle.
Investigators alleged the two men frequently spent time with an underage victim and that Chad Hartley repeatedly transported the child to Wilmington’s residence for unsupervised nude sleepovers. Court records allege Hartley sometimes remained at the residence during the visits.
Further investigations uncovered that Anna Hartley allowed Wilmington extensive and unsupervised access to an underage victim over several months, during which Wilmington engaged in inappropriate behavior, including sending nude images of the child in his home, according to court records. Court records add that Anna Hartley shared images of other children with Wilmington and also brought them to his house.
Court records also state Wilmington was providing medical guidance and access to medication for Anna Hartley and the victim.
Authorities also identified another suspect as William J. Sneiderwine, 61, of Vancouver. Detectives arrested Sneiderwine on May 7 while serving a search warrant at a Vancouver residence. He was booked into the Clark County Jail on allegations of first-degree conspiracy to commit child molestation and tampering with physical evidence.
Sneiderwine, previously referred to as “Will” in earlier court records, remains jailed now on $800,000 bail after the addition of new charges that include multiple counts of possession of child pornography.
Prosecutors alleged he destroyed evidence connected to Hartley and Wilmington. Court testimony also revealed Sneiderwine is a registered sex offender and may have previously worked as a teacher. A LinkedIn profile identified him as an event manager for Club Demonstration Services.
Court records state Anna Hartley admitted knowledge of nude sexual encounters involving a minor and the three male suspects.
Chad Hartley faces an extensive list of charges, including first-degree child molestation, first-degree trafficking, multiple counts related to possession and distribution of depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, voyeurism and sexual exploitation of a minor. Prosecutors indicated during a May 6 court hearing that additional charges are anticipated.
Anna Hartley was scheduled to be arraigned in Clark County Superior Court on Monday, May 18, after press time.
As the criminal investigation continues, a civil lawsuit has also been filed against Kaiser Permanente over Wilmington’s alleged conduct.
Attorneys with Pfau Cochran Vertetis Amala PLLC, known as PCVA Law, filed the lawsuit Monday, May 11, on behalf of a former patient identified only as Jane Doe. The lawsuit alleges Kaiser Permanente knew Wilmington posed a danger to pediatric patients but failed to intervene despite years of complaints.
According to the lawsuit, numerous survivors have recently come forward alleging sexual abuse and inappropriate conduct by Wilmington during medical examinations over several decades. Attorneys claim survivors described medically inappropriate genital and breast examinations conducted without gloves or chaperones, unnecessary nudity and repeated comments encouraging nudity.
PCVA Law attorneys also alleged parents and medical staff had reported concerns about Wilmington to Kaiser Permanente for years. Among the allegations cited in the lawsuit are reports that Wilmington invited children to his home and made inappropriate comments during examinations.
“PCVA Law says that they have not only heard from dozens of survivors of Dr. Wilmington, but have also heard from numerous parents and medical staff who reported his misconduct over the years to Kaiser,” a news release by the law office stated. “These reports were clearly ignored.”
“For example, one parent reportedly notified Kaiser Permanente staff several years ago that Wilmington repeatedly invited children to his home and that the behavior appeared inappropriate,” the release continued. “In another instance, approximately three years ago, the guardian of a minor patient allegedly reported concerns to Kaiser Permanente management after Wilmington made inappropriate comments during an examination that caused the child significant discomfort. Nearly twenty years ago, another parent reported that Dr. Wilmington had done an inappropriate and invasive sports physical on her daughter.”
The plaintiff in the lawsuit, going by Jane Doe, stated she trusted both Wilmington and the institutions that employed him. Attorneys representing the plaintiff said they are seeking answers regarding what Kaiser Permanente knew and whether warning signs were ignored.
“We are seeing a pattern of institutions ignoring serious complaints that put their patients at risk,” said Mallory Allen, partner at PCVA Law, in the release. “We want to know exactly what institutions knew, when they knew it, and whether appropriate action was taken to protect children because these families deserve answers.”
The law firm stated that additional survivors and witnesses have continued coming forward as publicity surrounding the investigation grows.
