firing our rythem guitarist to replace him with a new one

our current rythem guitarist is about to be fired from the band, I don't know how to go about this, would it be easier for me, his best friend or our lead singer/lead guitarst to fire him? he isn't as talented as the rest of us on our instruments and needs to learn alot more before he's up to our level. at the same time, we recent;y found an incredible guitarist to replace him that is more experianced. were only teenagers (me being 17 and the oldest) and we don't really know how to go about this, our lead guitarst and drummer go to the same school, and i go to the same school as our current rythym. were going to finish out the next 2 gigs with him, should we break the news before or after the gigs?


p.s. he doesn't show up for practice and plays in one of our original songs, and bass in one of the covers (he already knew the song and I didn't really like the song to begin with)

i just don't want to hurt his feelings or piss him off.

 

funny thing was he was a roadie for a while.

we are going to tell him, it's just when? this bands been through some crap recently, one of our "friends" stole a large some of our guitarists personall money (he was saving up for a new guitar) and spent it in the coarse of a day, then about 2 weeks later gets arrested and ends up getting our guitarist and drummer involved in it, he stole a bass speaker and PA from someones car on the school lot and stashed it in our drummers car, whom he assumed would give him a ride home, someone saw it in the car and they called our drummer and guitarist (usually rides home with the drummer to practice) he gets called to the office aswell. yesterday we found out that because this was his second offense he'll be in prison six months to a year, he doesn't listen to anyone, we're having band practice and tell him he can't come over, yet he still does after our guitarists father leaves. before this whole stint he sets fire-cracker under someones car runs and manages to get us mixed up in it, he goes home, then we get a call saying he'll be back. we basically run out of the neighborhood and weight for our manager to get home.

sorry for the rant. that was eating at me, and I hate to say it, but i'm glad that he's in prison.

my freind isn't a bad player but he isn't up to our level and doesn't want to write his own parts, while the person that will eentually replace him, can improvise almost aswell as me (i'm okay for my experiance level)

the mand melds together when the new guys there, and he has a more controlled sound and technique.

 

no way i'd do it throug e-mail, IM, or phone. that would just be wrong. we were planning to tell him as a group, but it will still be difficult. i've read alot of things can happen.

my main worry is the fact that he used to cut, (3 or 4 years ago), I don't want to start a relapse or something of that nature.