Las Vegas Police Thankful For Only Partial Chaos?

The Gangsta Thug Association National Basketball Association held its All-star Game in Las Vegas this past week. It was an orgy of violence and incivility.

[T]here were four shootings related to NBA events. A shooting in front of the Minxx Gentlemen's Club injured three people. Witnesses say a fight inside the club led to the shooting outside.

Estrella, a Minxx dancer said, "A famous rapper, Nelly, came in. He spent so much money that people and customers were just going crazy."

Three people were shot. One still remains in critical condition at the hospital.

It wasn't the shootings, but the general rudeness of the NBA fans which left a lasting impression for some in Las Vegans.

Teresa Frey, Coco's general manager said, "I have been spit on. I have had food thrown at me. I have lost two servers out of fear. I have locked my doors out of fear of violence."

"With any type of event you have a percentage of the attendees, or people who come and are not here for the right reasons," said the sheriff.

The sheriff cannot arrest anyone for being rude, but he says officers did their best with an event lasting four days at a number of different places around the Las Vegas Strip.

"There is always going to be issues that arise," said Sheriff Gillespie.

For many people working on the Las Vegas Strip, those issues were enough to hope the All-Star game never returns. For the sheriff, he would support a rematch at the Thomas and Mack.

Visitors also felt the different kind of Las Vegas atmosphere. "There was a problem with the people trying walking in front of cars and things like that," said David Hart, visitor from Houston.

"It was very crowded but we did get to where we were going," said Gwen Hart, visitor from Houston.

Gwen and David Hart flew into town on Friday and when they saw the large groups of younger NBA fans, they say they avoided them to avoid problems.

That's the same technique David Botero and his wife used. "It was definitely a Las Vegas we had not seen in the past. It was not vintage Vegas at all," David Botero said. He moved from Las Vegas to New York three years ago. His wife surprised him with a 30th birthday trip back to the city they both love. It turned out to be bad timing.

Although many Las Vegans, including Teresa Frey, support an NBA team in Las Vegas, she doesn't want to see another All-Star game anytime soon.

"I know that any amount of revenue I made does not justify me being assaulted," she said.

I've seen this type of behavior first hand having lived through more than one Freaknik here in Atlanta. The "Freak" was as bad as you can imagine and then some. Still, the Clark County Sheriff would welcome the NBA back. Outrageous and sad.