Judge: Ono owns Lennon footage

A federal judge has found that the widow of John Lennon is the rightful copyright holder of rare, intimate footage showing the former Beatle and his family in London in 1970.

Judge Rya Zobel issued the ruling Thursday, refusing to overturn last year's decision that threw out a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by a Lawrence-based company that said it owned the videotapes.

World Wide Video LLC accused Ono of interfering with its right to use the material. The company said it bought the footage from the man who filmed it, Ono's ex-husband Anthony Cox.

Ono said she had an agreement with Cox the tapes would never be used commercially, and bought all rights to them from a broker in 2002. World Wide Video said that broker did not have the right to sell them.