Though it's highly unusual, there will be travelers who post here who live in highly violent neighborhoods. It's rare for someone posting here to live in that way, I'm thinking. If my memory isn't failing me, in 2011 the murder rate in Mazatlan exceed that in New York, Los Angeles or Chicago. Cities which are hugely larger. In addition to the murders, high rates of violent crimes are occuring in Mazatlan. The tourism boosters in Mazatlan would like to keep this type of crime information out of the hands of people making travel decisions, I think, but one only has to search online to find the data. And while there are destinations elsewhere in the World where safety risks exist, I don't know of anyone who seeks them out as a vacation choice.