in less than 24 hours an albuquerque man will learn his fate-- for gunning down a young, aspiring artist. lawrence vargas was just 23 when he was killed. today his family told us they're ready to put this behind them-- and move on by honoring their son. our kayla anderson has more. joseph espinoza faces up to 16 years behind bars... for killing 23-year-old lawrence vargas. today the vargas family prepares to face espinoza for the final time. "it's not something i want to do. but i feel i gotta do it for my brother" vargas was killed in a downtown parking garage in july of '08 ... shot randomly... a victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. marie gonzales has already been sentenced for the murder. she's the one who handed joseph espinoza the gun. now, vargas's mom wants espinoza out of her mind. "i don't want to expend anymore energy on joseph espinoza. he's torn my family apart. and what happens tomorrow is in god's hands." with their faith, family and friends by their side... the vargas family has a new mission... to keep the legacy of lawrence alive. he was following in his father's footsteps as an artist. "i taught him how to hold a paintbrush before he could use a, before he could write his name." now his family has created a gift line using his artwork. they're dedicating the proceeds to a foundation created in lawrence's name. it provides shoes for kids in need... and helps other families who've lost a child. "we need to take that anger and that sadness and channel it. channel it in positive ways." you can see and even buy some of lawrence vargas's artwork this weekend. on saturday, the family will be at the kirtland air force base exchange from 11 to 4. they will also be at coronado center on sunday from 11 to 4. proceedsrom sales like this ornament support the lawrence charles vargas memorial shoes for kids and acts of compassion foundation
