One June night in Lake County, a deputy traveling south on U.S. 27 saw two sports cars speeding down the highway side by side.
One was a red Chevrolet Corvette. The other was a gray Nissan 350Z. According to probable-cause affidavits filed after the arrests, radar put the Corvette at 125 mph and the Nissan at 110 mph.
The posted speed limit was 45 mph.
Two Cars
The encounter began around 11:30 p.m. on June 12 near U.S. 27 and County Road 33 in the Leesburg area.
Deputies split up as the cars continued south. One stopped the Nissan south of State Road 48, while another pursued the Corvette and stopped it north of the highway.
The Nissan’s driver was 85-year-old William Bosworth of Leesburg. 57-year-old Phillip Signorino of Titusville drove the Corvette. News 6, which obtained body-camera footage from the encounters, reported that both men denied knowing one another and denied racing.
His Favorite Car
Bosworth told the deputy that the Corvette had swerved toward him. He said he was out taking a ride in his favorite car, and maintained that he had not set out to race anyone. He said he accelerated after the Corvette moved toward him.
The deputy did not accept that explanation and arrested Bosworth. The deputy then filed the case in Lake County court after the traffic stop.
Bosworth faced one count of racing on a highway and one count of dangerous, excessive speeding. Charges resulting in dangerous excessive speeding were due to his speed being more than 50 mph above the posted limit, and being over 100 mph.
The Corvette
Signorino also disputed the deputy’s account. After being stopped in the Corvette, he denied racing and challenged the reported 125 mph radar reading. He told deputies that his car was not capable of reaching that speed.
The arrest records nevertheless placed the two cars side by side when the deputy first observed them, and documented the separate radar readings before the stops.
News 6 reported another exchange after deputies took Signorino into custody. When jail personnel asked which car he had been driving, deputies said Signorino identified it as the Corvette. He called it “the one that won.”
Signorino’s case was also entered in Lake County court after his arrest. He faced the same two charges as Bosworth: racing on a highway and dangerous, excessive speeding.
After The Stops
Both drivers had posted bond after the arrests, according to court and jail records. Their cases began with the same observations, but separate stops and separate explanations. Bosworth said he reacted after the Corvette swerved toward him, while Signorino denied both racing and reaching the speed recorded by the deputy’s radar.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office arrested both men following the June 12 encounter. Their criminal cases were then filed with the Lake County Clerk of Courts.