Taxpayer Asks Michael Jackson Estate to Repay L.A. for Memorial

The grand Michael Jackson memorial in Los Angeles last July reportedly cost the cash-strapped city millions of dollars in police overtime and sanitation expenses, and now one angry resident wants the King of Pop's family to foot the bill. According to the AP, Jose F. Vallejo is seeking $3.3 million from Jackson's estate, saying he's entitled to request the funds as a taxpayer. He's requested that the money be deposited into Los Angeles' treasury.

Remember Michael Jackson in photos from his star-studded memorial.

While the memorial cost the city millions, it reportedly earned $4 million for the city's hotels, restaurants and local businesses, too. However, in his claim Vallejo alleges, "The [Jackson] estate benefited from the use of public resources that amounted to an illegal gift of public funds." The city of Los Angeles and AEG Live, the organizers of the memorial and Jackson's planned This Is It concerts in London, have reportedly been in talks to repay the city some of the costs but according to the AP no agreement has yet been reached. At one point, L.A. mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's office launched a Website seeking public donations to help ease the city's financial burden in paying for the memorial.

As Rolling Stone previously reported, the Jackson memorial featured performances by Mariah Carey, John Mayer, Stevie Wonder and newcomers like Judith Hill and Shaheen Jafargholi. According to the AP, the administrators of Jackson's estate will decide whether Vallejo's claims merit payment.

Check out all of Rolling Stone's essential Michael Jackson coverage.

Related Stories:
• Michael Jackson Memorial Unites Smokey Robinson, Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder and More
• Los Angeles Mayor Asks For Donations To Fund Michael Jackson Memorial
• L.A. Braces for Michael Jackson Mania as Fans Arrive for Memorial

• 
  MUSIC 100 Greatest Debut Albums
• 
  MOVIES 'Star Trek' Is Crazy Good
• 
  TV 10 Shows to Watch This Summer
• 
  POLITICS No Price Big Banks Can't Fix

Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

More Song Stories entries »

Twitter