Repeat domestic abuser convicted of killing stepdaughter outside San Leandro Chili’s

SAN LEANDRO — A man suspected of beating, threatening or choking his family members three times in three years has been convicted of murdering his stepdaughter during what was intended to be an act of kindness for the estranged defendant.

Samuel Langworthy, 51, was convicted of second-degree murder with a gun enhancement, unlawful firearm activity, and assault with a firearm in the Nov. 11, 2023, killing of Dorcas-Cothy Kabasele, 24, whose final act was to attempt to warn her mother away from Langworthy and convince her to leave the dangerous situation. Langworthy allegedly pulled a gun and shot Kabasele in the head during a heated confrontation at a Chili’s parking lot in San Leandro, later claiming to police that it was an accident.

But the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office saw the shooting not as a lone act but as part of a pattern of domestic violence that started in 2020, when Langworthy punched another of his estranged wife’s daughters during an argument in San Ramon. For that, he completed a misdemeanor diversion course in Contra Costa County, but was charged two years later with threatening his wife with a hammer during an argument in their home.

“Give me my son before I make you bleed all over the bed,” Langworthy allegedly said. For that, he received misdemeanor probation, which was still active at the time of the murder.

Just two months before Kabasele was killed, Langworthy allegedly choked his estranged wife and punched her in the face, leaving her bruised, in Oakland. The woman testified that despite the abuse, she agreed to meet Langworthy at the restaurant in broad daylight, for what was supposed to be a safe, public way to give him a chance to see his children.

Instead, Langworthy shot and killed Kabasele while the victim’s then-13-year-old sister sat in a car a few feet away, filming. Langworthy then fled, but was picked up three hours later in Kern County and brought to jail in the Bay Area. He told police he threw the murder weapon out of the car in Livermore but they never found the gun, according to court records.

One of the last things Kabasele said was a plea to her mother: “You need to leave,” she told her, according to witness testimony.

Langworthy faces 40 years to life in prison for the murder and gun enhancements alone. His sentencing date has been tentatively set for Oct. 14.