A judge has ruled that the mother of a woman in a coma since she was hit by a Lincoln police cruiser in 2006 cannot seek more than $1 million in damages from the city and a former police officer.

Deborah Chinnow of Adams sued the city and former Lincoln police officer Amanda May for more than $10 million on behalf of her daughter, Jena Van Groningen.

Van Groningen was struck by a cruiser driven by May on 48th Street near C Street shortly after midnight Nov. 5, 2006. Van Groningen, who was crossing the street with friends at the time, was thrown 35 feet.

The lawsuit, filed last year under the state Political Subdivisions Tort Claims Act, sought $900,000 in medical expenses, $5 million for future medical bills and lost earning capacity and $5 million in general damages.

Attorneys for Chinnow and Van Groningen also challenged the constitutionality of the $1 million limit the Claims Act places on recovery.

The defendants later filed various motions, including one to dismiss damage claims in excess of the cap. A hearing on the motions was held in January.

In the written order Friday,  Lancaster County District Judge John Colborn said the plaintiffs could not simultaneously file a claim under the act and challenge the act’s constitutionality.

Citing an earlier Nebraska court ruling, Colborn wrote, “It is fundamental that a person may not seek the benefit of a statute and at the same time question its constitutionality.”

Even if allowed, Colborn continued, the constitutional challenge “would ultimately fail.”

Attorneys for the family argued, among other things, the act violates the Commerce Clause to the U.S. Constitution.

Colborn said the U.S. Supreme Court in a 1996 decision ruled the commerce clause does not trump a state’s sovereign immunity. And the Nebraska Supreme Court has said the capping of damages is a legitimate legislative function, he wrote.

The judge also struck the plaintiff’s demand for specific general damages. Nebraska court rules do not allow general damages to be specified. It was unclear Monday if the plaintiffs can amend the lawsuit to include non-specific general damages.

Attorneys for the family were in court Monday and unavailable for comment.

Colborn also sustained a motion from the city of Lincoln and May for a more definite statement from the plaintiffs regarding the special damages claims.

The family is seeking compensation for accruing and actual medical expenses in excess of $900,000.

However, Colborn wrote, the plaintiffs have failed to specify the medical expenses or explain why those damages cannot be specified. State court rules require the specification, he wrote.

It was unclear Monday if the plaintiffs can appeal Colborn’s order immediately, or not until after the case’s final disposition in district court.

Reach Clarence Mabin at 473-7234 or cmabin@journalstar.com.