Chicago Man Faces Charges After Alleged Assault in Hospital

A man from Chicago, who has been arrested over a dozen times this year, is facing new allegations for reportedly attacking a doctor in a hospital elevator.

Sean Popps, 39, was taken into custody last month after an incident at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Reports indicate that he followed a 42-year-old cardiologist into an elevator around 1:39 p.m. on November 2 and began punching him in the head, causing the doctor to stumble back while trying to protect his face.

According to police, the assault was unprovoked, as the doctor had not had any prior interactions with Popps.

Previous Incidents and Arrests

CWB Chicago noted that the assault resulted in the doctor suffering several injuries, including bruises and abrasions on various parts of his body. Following the attack, a security guard recognized Popps from surveillance footage and informed authorities that he’d been involved in numerous incidents at the hospital in the past. It was suggested that he be barred from the facility.

Other police personnel mentioned that there had been roughly 30 incidents connected to Popps at the hospital alone over the last 19 months. That’s quite alarming, perhaps indicating a pattern of behavior.

Since January, Popps has faced more than a dozen arrests, mostly occurring in or around Northwestern Memorial Hospital. In 2024 alone, he reportedly had seven arrests at or near the same location. His history includes two arrests in 2020, two in 2021, one in 2022, and another in 2023.

As of now, there’s no information available about an attorney representing Popps.

Interestingly, at the time of his latest arrest, he was already on pretrial release for an alleged trespassing incident that occurred in October.

The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office and the hospital did not respond to requests for comments regarding this latest incident.

Popps has been charged with public assault and remains in custody at the Cook County Jail.