The arrests seem inconsequential compared with the latest week of violence: Most of the 80-plus people picked up in a weekend police sweep throughout Boston were wanted because they had skipped court hearings on minor charges such as larceny, smoking in public, or missing jury duty.

But their histories of crime are much darker, police said. Each person arrested in the sweep is known to police for a violent past; the arrests were meant to weed out players in a world of crime that has rocked Boston with eight slayings this year, four of which occurred in the last week.

"These warrants are a valuable tool for police to send messages to those creating trouble that it's not going to be tolerated," said Officer James Kenneally, a department spokesman.

Those arrested in the sweep, which started after a killing in Dorchester on Friday night, may not be considered suspects in the latest round of shootings, he said. Still, he called them "high-impact players" in the city who are familiar with the violence and continue to commit crime.

They are young and old. Some are teens, known to police for their gang affiliations, Kenneally said. They include Corey Robertson, 17, who was arrested on a parole violation, and Kris Ganga, 18, who was arrested on a warrant of assault with a deadly weapon, a gun.

"These people are known to police," Kenneally said. "These warrants allow us to send a message to the high-impact players . . . that we are aware of those creating the largest amount of trouble."

The sweep was law enforcement's answer to a violent week in Boston in which four people were killed in four days. One of the victims was killed leaving the funeral of another. One was shot while eating at a restaurant. The total of eight slayings three weeks into the New Year is four times the homicide rate at this time last year.

Most of those arrested were held without bail pending a court appearance tomorrow, police said.

In the sweep, police working with the FBI and the US Marshal's Service flooded city neighborhoods and so-called hot spots of crime, arresting at least 67 people in the first day. Over the weekend, police continued to flood neighborhoods, providing a visible presence to try to quell the bloodshed.

Community activists said the increased police presence was needed to stem a tide of violence that has grown so brazen that people are shooting each other in daylight, in public places.

"A lot of these people think they can get away with murder, not only get away with murder but get away with it in broad daylight," said Matthew Machera, a former prosecutor and chairman of the board of the Ella J. Baker House in Dorchester.

Machera said the arrests of known players has taken off the street people who might engage in retaliatory killings or be targets themselves.

"Sometimes, getting these people off the street is getting the next potential victim off the street," he said.

Plus, he said, it lets criminals know that police know who they are and that "we're watching you."

Machera said the sweep is an anticrime tactic police often employ to stem an uptick in violence.

Still, he said, police can only do so much. Community action is needed to attack the culture of the violence, particularly a "no-snitching" mentality that has swayed witnesses from coming forward, he said.

"We have to stand up as a community, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with [police] and take the community back," he said.

The Rev. William E. Dickerson, pastor of Greater Love Tabernacle, also called for community and spiritual approaches, saying clergy must work with community members and police.

"There are a few people in the community who are making it uncomfortable and unsafe for others: those holding guns," he said. "Those who refuse to listen must suffer consequences of the law; law is for the lawless."

Dickerson plans to lead services this week for some of last week's victims, and said that it is always painful to look a family member in the eye. But he also said it is an opportunity for hope, to ignite the community. Several pastors in Boston have had loved ones killed violently and have taken a leading role in crime-fighting. Dickerson's nephew, Germaine I. Rucker, 15, was shot and killed in gang violence in 2003, he said.

"There's a problem, and everyone's searching for the solutions to help turn around the violence in Boston," he said. "The reality is we have to get our community back in control."