Five months after City Attorney Carmen Trutanich hinted of possible criminal or civil action over public money spent on the Michael Jackson tribute at Staples Center, members of two City Council committees asked him Monday to explain whether he actually plans to take any action.   

During a meeting of the City Council's Public Safety Committee, Councilman Dennis Zine said he wants the city attorney to come before the full council on Friday to explain whether any charges would be forthcoming.   

He made the request after Councilwoman Jan Perry said Staples Center owner AEG is not likely to help the city recover any of the $3.2 million in taxpayer money spent on the July 7 event "while there is a threat of prosecution hanging over its head.''   

Assistant City Attorney Pete Echeverria responded that in matters of criminal prosecution, "the city attorney does not report to the council -- that's a matter that he acts on independently.''   

"While you may agendize it, he may not be in a position to give you that kind of report,'' he said.   

But during a meeting of the council's Budget and Finance Committee, Councilman Bernard Parks said he would also like to hear what Trutanich's office was planning to do on the case.   

"Even though you (the City Attorney's Office) believe that we're not privy to the criminal case, I do think we'd be privy to what sections of the penal code you might be considering, or what are the alleged violations,'' Parks said. "I can understand you refusing to give us the details of the case, but I do believe that you owe us some explanation of what is the overall issue of the criminal behavior that you're investigating.''   

Two weeks after the memorial, Trutanich told the council his investigation into city's expenditures on the event had "taken an unanticipated turn that raises both civil and criminal aspects.''   

He did not elaborate in public, instead discussing the matter with the council in closed session.   

But several members of the council, as well as the city's Chief Legislative Analyst and City Administrative Officer, have questioned Trutanich's investigation because the council did not pass an ordinance until October that could compel reimbursement for such events.   

"There was no ordinance prior to the memorial providing for full cost recovery, so we are faced with a situation where we rely on the goodness and kindness of AEG, and whether or not they want to have a discussion with us about this,'' Perry said.   

Perry added she and representatives of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa began asking AEG around the time of the memorial about helping offset the city's expenses. She said AEG began collecting donations for the city but stopped when the city attorney raised the prospect of a lawsuit.   

"I feel confident that at some point, if the threat of criminal prosecution is dropped or acted on -- one way or the other -- we may be able to resume those discussions,'' Perry said.   

Perry has taken the lead in talks with AEG because her district includes Staples Center. Also, she was the acting mayor at the time of the memorial, because both Villaraigosa and City Council President Eric Garcetti were out of town.   

City Chief Legislative Analyst Gerry Miller and City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana calculated the memorial cost taxpayers $3.2 million -- including $2 million in police overtime -- but injected $4 million into the local economy,   

They said costs for the memorial skyrocketed because the Los Angeles Police Department, which provided security at the memorial, anticipated that up to 1 million Jackson fans might show up at Staples Center.   

To provide crowd control and prevent a repeat of the riots that marred the Los Angeles Lakers championship celebration, the LAPD deployed 3,968 officers in and around Staples Center, Forest Lawn Memorial-Park in the Hollywood Hills, the Jackson family compound in Encino and the singer's rented mansion in Holmby Hills, from the morning of July 6 through the evening of July 7.   

Though the massive crowds predicted at Staples Center did not materialize -- the actual turnout was closer to 20,000 -- Miller and Santana concluded that "in light of the potential risks to the public and past experience with potentially large and unpredictable events, city departments acted reasonably and responsibly in planning and deploying staff for the Michael Jackson memorial.''   

Jackson died June 25 at age 50 from an overdose of a powerful sedative he was using as a sleep aid.