The day after we got there I read in the paper where a 16 year old boy was shot and killed in Vegas walking home from school.
Yes, there are many, many strange and scary looking people milling about and so many pick-pockets that you have to hold tight to everything.
Lana, when we went to Laughlin a few years back there were two motorcycle gangs having a rumble and some were killed. One of the gangs were the hells angels. They live the desert life and raise hell.
My husbands family stayed at the Imperial Palace and it was just nasty. The air system just can't handle all the smoke and the ceilings are too low. It's a very old building that's slated to be torn down. Avoid this building people.
I just saw this on the news too:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23405226/from/ET
Granted the big fancy hotels on the strip are beautiful inside, and it's masks what's really going on outside.