Coalition decries steep rise in killings

The nonprofit group aims to quell violence in Boston, where 70 people had been slain on city streets through Nov. 21 this year, compared with 45 for the same period last year. Gunfire had accounted for 55 of this year’s homicides, according to Boston police crime data.

Among the victims was 39-year-old Tahitian Milton, who was killed Oct. 23 when an unknown gunman opened fire with an AK-47 assault rifle inside the Quick Stop Convenience Store on Warren Street.

“We’re here to turn this into a site of hope,’’ said the Rev. Jeffrey Brown, the coalition’s executive director, standing outside the store where scrawled on a wall was “RIP Tye,’’ a reference to Milton’s nickname. “We are calling for a cease-fire . . . We are calling on people to stop the violence.’’

A public awareness campaign announced yesterday will include hundreds of posters plastered on MBTA buses and about 40,000 club cards, which will act as a reminder for people to stay safe. They will be distributed through public schools, nonprofit organizations, and local businesses.

Paul MacMillan, MBTA transit police chief, said city buses are an appropriate place to spread the antiviolence message. “We are not immune to violence,’’ he said, referencing a stabbing death on a Roxbury bus on Election Day. “We are very pleased to be helping to spread this message.’’

The ad blitz is occurring amid a scourge of homicides this year in city neighborhoods. Three people were killed Sunday in an apparent gang-related shooting and stabbing at Same Old Place, a pizzeria on Centre Street in Jamaica Plain. In Mattapan, Emmanuel Loissant, 17, and Nervin Charlot, 19, were found shot to death earlier this month, just days apart.

Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis said earlier this month that many of the homicides are drug-related. But many victims have also been innocent bystanders, such as Milton, who is believed to have been standing in line at the Quick Stop when the gunman opened fire, officials said.

“This year, there are a number of people who have been [killed] who are truly innocent victims,’’ Suffolk District Attorney Daniel Conley said, speaking at the late-morning news conference called to announce the Season of Peace campaign. “She was [at the store] at the wrong time.’’

Milton’s death was one of more than a dozen homicides in Roxbury this year. The high number of homicides prompted the community to hold the Roxbury March for Peace in late October.

Police continue to investigate Milton’s death, Conley said. The assailant has not been found, and tips from the public are needed to help solve the case, he said.

“The family has called for justice,’’ he said. “We are looking for people who have information.’’

Conley said law enforcement officials also are still investigating the Nov. 21 slayings at the Jamaica Plain pizza parlor. The victims were Johnnell Cruz , 20, of Jamaica Plain, and Ariel Dume, 20, and Winzisky Soto, 27, both of Dorchester.

Conley said most homicides this year have occurred in Dorchester, Mattapan, and Roxbury. Investigators have made progress persuading residents to come forward with information about violent crimes, he said.

“We are seeing a little more cooperation,’’ Conley said, stressing that he was not speaking directly about any one case.

The TenPoint Coalition is looking for the community to embrace this year’s Season of Peace message, with Brown calling for the cease-fire to last at least through New Year’s Day.

“We are asking parents to talk to their children, older brothers and sisters to their younger [siblings] . . . We’re asking them to practice peace,’’ Brown said, flanked by coalition staff holding copies of placards announcing the campaign.

The placards depict five teenagers, standing on a hill, facing Roxbury. On the back of their hooded sweat shirts are letters spelling “peace’’ as a dove flies into the night.

Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com.