"My father was taken from us in a violent, senseless act that forever changed the course of my life," Karina Ramos said in court on Wednesday.
She remembered her father, Roberto, for 40 minutes as she spoke about the impact he had, and the love he shared.
"My father never turned anybody away," Ramos said. "He was a man of deep integrity."
Roberto was an innocent victim who was with his son in 2017 when he lost his life to Lavale Vean.
Prosecutors say Vean meant to kill Roberto's son, possibly over a dispute from years earlier. The bullets instead killed Roberto.
"Mr. Vean placed himself in that situation, and it is sad for everybody involved," Fresno County prosecutor Samantha Dukes said.
Vean denied the allegations for years, saying the bullets came from another gun.
But with a trial days away this spring, Vean pleaded no contest to murder.
"He does accept responsibility," defense attorney Miles Harris said. "He is sorry for his actions."
Vean will now spend 34 years to life in prison. The judge was not swayed by the letter he wrote.
"Not a single word in this letter that you've submitted to this court has anything to do with how bad you feel for that group of people sitting on the right of this courtroom," Fresno County Superior Court Presiding Judge Houry Sanderson said.
Action News has learned Vean used his letter to ask for a prison assignment close to home.
Judge Sanderson said his housing location is up to the state Department of Corrections.
She urged Vean, who is 28, to reflect.
"I certainly hope for your sake that you make better choices while you are incarcerated and when you are released someday, many years down the road," Sanderson said.
She then offered a final message to the more than 30 of the victim's loved ones who were in the courtroom.
"You can see him in your children (and) your grandchildren someday, and he is part of each of you," Judge Sanderson said.
Vean is considered a youthful offender, which could impact his parole status down the road.
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