The Gallatin Police Department nearly became the first department in the state's history to lose direct access to confidential law enforcement databases.

Before former Police Chief John Tisdale retired from his post after accusations he misused criminal background tools, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation was mulling the revocation of those privileges for the department.

"I sure didn't want to take it away," said Brad Truitt, director of the TBI's Information Systems department, but it was an option officials seriously considered.

Officials say misuse of confidential law enforcement records databases is rare in Tennessee.

But, several high-profile cases in which public employees accessed sensitive law enforcement information for non-law enforcement purposes have led to suspensions, firings, lawsuits and criminal investigations.

And technology is making it easier to access that information by a larger pool of people, making it more likely for breaches to occur here and across the nation.

"You're going to have to learn to deal with this new technology," said John T. Soma, law professor and executive director of the University of Denver's Privacy Foundation. "Those issues are very fluid. We're going to see more of it as a result."

Tisdale retired as chief in January, and the department was able to keep access to the Tennessee Information Enforcement System, or TIES, a collection of state and federal law enforcement databases that contain sensitive personal records.

At the time of his retirement, the 56-year-old Tisdale said he was "old and wore out."

"I've been doing this over 30 years, and I'm tired and I just think it's time,'' he said.

Tisdale was accused of four questionable searches: two cases in which individuals in an adoption wanted proof they had no criminal record, a third involving a convicted murderer in a Mississippi civil case in which Tisdale would testify as an expert witness and a fourth that investigators still can't explain.

Sumner County District Attorney General Ray Whitley investigated the breach, but said there was "no evidence of any kind that could sustain a conviction.'' Whitley did not file any charges against Tisdale.

In a letter, TBI Director Mark Gwyn blasted the Gallatin department for what the TBI called "a pattern of misuse and disregard for the rules … over the past several years," that showed "no real attempt by the Gallatin Police Department to improve" how it handles sensitive information.

As punishment, the agency will have to undergo audits every 6 months, as opposed to every three years.

Though the TBI audits the TIES system, the Tennessee Administrative Offices of the Court, which oversees a system called the Criminal Justice Portal, has no such checks in place.

The portal is a collection of statewide criminal justice databases and records, including driver's licenses, vehicle titles and registrations, state protection orders and wanted persons.

"All audits are handled by the individual agencies that use the portal," said spokeswoman Laura Click.

Meanwhile, nine former and current Mt. Juliet employees settled a lawsuit against the Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport Authority and a former Wilson County commissioner who accessed information through the portal system.

Christopher Sorey resigned his position at the authority in 2008 after the TBI said he ran improper checks on several Mt. Juliet officials, including the city manager and mayor. No charges were filed, but the nine sued him, citing invasion of privacy. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Mt. Juliet Vice Mayor Will Sellers, whose information Sorey accessed, said having private personal information revealed to someone improperly is frightening.

"We're all very happy this is all over and done with because you know when your identity is compromised you never know what the consequences are going to be," Sellers said.

Sorey has said he accessed the information to research fire and code violations in Mt. Juliet.

Truitt said the most information breaches across the state are inadvertent, and the few purposeful cases rarely involve someone seeking personal gain. But even so-called "curiosity" cases, in which an employee looks up a neighbor or a potential paramour out of curiosity, can affect public perception of such tools, Soma said.

"The main social concern is the integrity of law enforcement," he said. "When you give information to them, it's going to be kept confidential and only released in a court of law. If that information is being released, whether it's a petty little thing like a mistress or something very serious … that's a violation of the public trust."

Soma warned that the problems are likely to increase as technology improves. New Internet tools, better mobile technology and faster computers will make accessing the information faster and easier.

Truitt said Tennessee and other states are bracing for that possibility by trying to improve oversight and security.

"That availability of access and that amount of data is a good thing," Truitt said.

"But there's that much more being accessed. There's more people with access. There's easier access."