CNN.com
LOS ANGELES — Besides the cause of Michael Jackson’s death, another question mark surrounded the pop icon’s public memorial service on Tuesday: How many people would come to Los Angeles, California, for the remembrance?
Crowds are expected to be “very large,” and a police presence will be felt at the “King of Pop’s” public remembrance, said Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton.
“This is probably the largest event we’ve planned for since the 1984 Olympics -- in terms of a planned event,” he told CNN on Tuesday morning. “We really have no idea how many people are going to show up here.”
Bratton said he did not expect security problems at the service.
Jackson’s public memorial service, to be held at Los Angeles’ Staples Center, is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. PT (1 p.m. ET).
Through a lottery, fans were given 17,500 tickets to the remembrance for Jackson, who died of an undetermined cause on June 25.
Just 11,000 of those are for seats inside the Staples Center. The other 6,500 are for viewing the memorial telecast across the street at the Nokia Theater.
Member of the Jackson family set aside an additional 9,000 Staples Center seats to give out to people they choose, organizers said.
Crowds are expected to gather outside the event, which also will be broadcast live on television and on the Internet, including at CNN.com/Live.
Bratton encouraged people who do not have tickets to watch the event from home.
“They’re better off actually staying home because then you’ll actually be able to see the event itself,” he said.
Police said they had stationed 300 officers near the Staples Center.
By the time the memorial starts, police said they will ramp up their patrols to include 3,000 officers.
Cost could be a factor in the security efforts, as California has been hit hard by a budget crisis and the economic recession.
Bratton said police will “ramp down pretty significantly” because of costs if large crowds do not show up at Jackson’s public memorial.
The total cost for security at the event is estimated to be between $2 million and $4 million, he said.
Police have closed down a “multiblock” perimeter around the Staples Center and have shut down highway exits near the event for security purposes, he said.
But Bratton said he did not expect problems.
“We’re not anticipating disorderly crowds,” he said. “We’re just anticipating very large crowds.”
On Monday, police and security officers kept a close watch while fans lined up around the block to sign the memorial wall. Helicopters flew overhead and sheriff’s deputies could be seen strolling through with bomb-sniffing dogs.
Still, the mood remained festive.
Fans who won tickets to the memorial service through a lottery swarmed to Dodger Stadium -- some in smart cars, some on scooters and even one in an airport shuttle.
They entered giddy with anticipation and exited shaking with excitement, holding two priceless tickets and sporting wristbands that organizers put on them to prevent resales.
“It’s sparkly,” said Alex Jugant, a student from Pasadena, California. “Michael would have liked that.”
The ticket distribution process at the stadium Monday was orderly and smooth, said Los Angeles Police Capt. Bill Murphy.
One person tried to pass off a photocopied voucher; he was ejected, Murphy added.
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