A room at Crowne Plaza London Docklands. Originally branded as Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza, the first United States Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza Hotel was opened in Rockville, Maryland, in 1983. Within a couple of years the brand was spun off as an independent chain (still owned at the time by Holiday Inn).
Americans have a better chance of being killed in Chicago than U.S. troops do in Afghanistan, figures from the nationâs third-largest city show. This year 228 Chicago residents have been killed, while the number of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan during the same period is 144, The Huffington Post reported.
However the murder rate was still higher than many other U.S. cities. By comparison New York City, which is more than triple the size in population recorded less than 350 murders in 2013. As of June 30, there were nine fewer homicides in Chicago than during the same period as last year, according to The Associated Press. The Chicago Tribune updated its tally of Chicago shooting victims today, bringing up the total of those shot to 1,129 so far this year.