This image from a DVD shows the activities of Hells Angels member Rodney Cox at Harrah's Laughlin during the River Run in 2002. Review-Journal File Photo Julian Sher Author of book on Hells Angels

Sorting out what happened during the gunfight inside Harrah's Laughlin won't be the toughest challenge for federal prosecutors trying Hells Angels members; the true obstacle will be proving that the motorcycle club is an organized criminal enterprise, an expert says.

Success on the part of the government could have a chilling effect on the club's members, tempering their behavior and shattering their image of fun-loving, rogue bikers.

The trial is expected to peel layers off the sheltered motorcycle club, which prefers to show the public its charitable side, such as the annual Toys for Tots run during the holidays.

Julian Sher, author of the book "Angels of Death: Inside the Bikers' Global Crime Empire," said the bikers will fear more punishing prison terms if they are charged with U.S. Violent Crimes in Aid of Racketeering.

Racketeering is a charge the motorcycle club has successfully dodged over the years.

"There's a lot at stake," Sher said. "They're the only organization that wages public relations wars the same way they do a territorial battle. They are very PR conscious and they play up the image of the good-hearted outlaw."

Past attempts to prove the Hells Angels are a criminal enterprise have failed. But Sher said "never have the stars been so aligned for the feds."

Security cameras inside Harrah's captured the bloody 2002 war with the rival Mongols.

In addition, undercover law enforcement agents infiltrated Arizona-based Hells Angels clubs and at least one member flipped, providing a string of helpful information to police before and after the Harrah's incident.

"Everybody knows this is not about a barroom brawl, it's about trying to nail the Hells Angels as a criminal organization," Sher said.

A host of colorful witnesses are expected to testify for the prosecution.

Aside from eyewitnesses who hit the casino floor to dodge bullets, confidential informants and undercover cops will likely take the stand.

During his research for the book, Sher obtained copies of police affidavits and grand jury testimony that focused on April 27, 2002, the day the gunfight broke out in Harrah's.

The two motorcycle clubs crossed paths in Harrah's and had a brief discussion, according to the indictment. Then, according to the account in Sher's book, the Mongols pulled out weapons.

"As soon as the fighting starts, (Hells Angel Pete) Eunice pulls out a handgun and fires several times at Mongols," Sher wrote, quoting a police affidavit. Eunice is one of the men on trial this week.

His co-defendants' behavior is also detailed in the book. Calvin Schaefer swung a ball-peen hammer at two Mongols, then pulled out a handgun and fired shots, according to Sher's book. Rodney Cox attended to a fallen Hells Angel and attacked a Mongol with a crescent wrench when he approached.

Two Hells Angels, Jeramie Dean Bell, 27, of Hughson, Calif., and Robert Emmet Tumelty, 50, of Stockton, Calif., were shot to death. Mongols member Anthony Salvador Barrera, 43, died of stab wounds.

When Las Vegas police arrived, the fighting halted. Sgt. Gary Hood was the first on the scene, according to Sher's book.

"Everything just kind of stopped," Hood told the grand jury, according to Sher's account. "We're standing there looking at them and they're looking at us, and we're waiting for them to do something and they're waiting for us to do something, I guess."

Schaefer's attorney, David Chesnoff, told prospective jurors Monday that the Hells Angels were defending themselves.

"In Nevada you have a right to defend yourself; you have a right to carry a weapon," he said.

If former Hells Angels member Mike Kramer testifies, as expected, he could provide some of the more intriguing insights on the notorious club.

Kramer, a one-time "full-patched" Hells Angel, began cooperating with the government in exchange for a more lenient sentence on a murder charge.

By trial's end, the public's perception of heavy drinking bikers who occasionally garner attention for their charity work will be shattered, Sher said.

"It has a huge amount of symbolism and it has a legal impact," he said. "It's their public image as lovable rogues, of rebels with a cause, that will be shattered."

Although law enforcement officials familiar with the investigation declined comment because of the pending trial, some said never before has the federal government gone after so many Hells Angels at once.

The trial for the first 11 of the 42 Hells Angels indicted begins on Tuesday and is expected to last three months. U.S. District Judge James Mahan set hours for the trial from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.