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NEW YORK - A federal judge has tossed out a lawsuit by a former Ramones drummer who says he was cheated out of royalties.
U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin said in a ruling Friday that a contract Richard "Richie Ramone" Reinhardt signed when he performed with the Ramones between 1983 and 1987 clearly covered digital uses of his songs.
She noted that the contract defining phonograph records contained the words "now or hereafter known" when referring to forms of reproduction, making it clear that future technologies are covered by the agreement.
Reinhardt filed a lawsuit last year claiming he was owed nearly $1 million in royalties on songs sold over the Internet. He wrote six songs for the group.
The Ramones helped define punk after forming their band in New York in 1974. They performed for 22 years, with various members, before their last show in 1996.
Three of the group's founding members, Johnny, Joey and Dee Dee, have died in recent years.
Reinhardt's six songs for the Ramones were "Smash You," "Somebody Put Something in My Drink," "Human Kind," "I'm Not Jesus," "I Know Better Now" and "(You) Can't Say Something Nice."
Jeff Sanders, a lawyer for Reinhardt, did not immediately return a telephone message Tuesday seeking comment.
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