Bob Antonacci, the Republican candidate in the 50th Senate district race, wants to give victims of child sexual abuse more time to file lawsuits, a position that puts him at odds with one of his biggest supporters, retiring Sen. John DeFrancisco. Antonacci put out a statement today supporting the Child Victims Act, a state bill that would extend the statute of limitations on child sex crimes and provide a one-year window for past sexual abuse victims to file civil lawsuits.

Antonacci, Onondaga County's comptroller and a former board member of Vera House, said he's seen the effects of sexual assault. "These victims shouldn't be met with politicians putting an arbitrary clock on their healing. The state Assembly overwhelmingly approved the bill earlier this year, but it was not considered in the Republican-controlled Senate.