COLUMBIA--Fixing South Carolina's system for weeding out bad cops could require changing state law to encourage police agencies to report misconduct and penalize those who cover for wayward officers, a panel of top law enforcement leaders said Thursday.

The committee, looking to improve the state's system for policing problem cops, also wants to explore creation of a statewide Internet database to better track the work histories of South Carolina's roughly 14,000 law enforcement officers.

Panel member Jon Ozmint, state corrections director, said the committee will need the help of legislators to adopt laws that allow police agencies to freely share information with one another without fear of lawsuits.

In South Carolina, those agencies are protected only if they provide that information directly to the state Criminal Justice Academy.

"We have to say to them, 'If you want us to clean up our act, then you are going to have to give us this protection,' " Ozmint said.

Gov. Mark Sanford appointed the panel in response to The Post and Courier's series "Tarnished Badges," which detailed how troubled officers jump from one department to another despite histories of professional misconduct and criminal behavior.

The ideas discussed Thursday were prompted by a 90-minute presentation to the panel by state officials from Florida, which is regarded as having one of the nation's best systems for identifying and disciplining errant officers. Among the safeguards Florida has in place:

-- Shield laws that protect police agencies and private companies so they can share background information on applicants for law enforcement jobs.

"If a guy was caught sleeping on duty 15 times, you can tell them that," said Terry Baker, a supervisor with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. "The guy may not be happy, but there is nothing he can do about it legally."

-- A requirement that law enforcement agencies investigate all allegations of misconduct and questions of character involving their officers. They must then share the findings with the state if the allegations have merit. In South Carolina, departments have great discretion over investigations and the results might never be seen by outsiders.

-- A stringent screening process that goes beyond criminal background checks, requiring applicants to swear they haven't left previous police jobs under scrutiny for problem behavior. South Carolina is only beginning to look beyond obvious red flags, such as felony convictions and other crimes indicating poor character.

-- An online reporting system for all of Florida's law enforcement agencies that flags problem cops immediately. In South Carolina, which still deals mostly in paper forms, an officer can be fired from one department and hired by another before state officials are even informed.

-- A team of field investigators that has the authority to audit law enforcement agency's personnel files and review their disciplinary practices. South Carolina has no field investigators and relies heavily on whatever information police agencies choose to share.

Vicki Marsey, a bureau chief with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, said the state has 899 active discipline cases, representing about 1 percent of its nearly 82,000 officers.

Baker said the offenses run the gamut, from petty crimes to serious felonies, but often involve officers simply "being stupid and then lying about it."

Baker told the story of an officer who got caught pocketing a "Star Wars" action figure from a store while he was in uniform and with his cruiser waiting outside. He was arrested on shoplifting charges, and then compounded the problem by lying about his actions even though the evidence was clearly stacked against him, Baker said.

The 17-member committee liked some of Florida's ideas but not others. The union-heavy Sunshine State has a highly structured system that has several levels of appeal for officers accused of wrongdoing. Panel members saw the system as cumbersome and disliked some of the punishment guidelines, which they viewed as weak. For example, officers guilty of child abuse or stalking might face only a temporary suspension of their police powers.

Still, the panel seemed in agreement that some tinkering is necessary to improve South Carolina's system for monitoring its law enforcement ranks. In particular, the group likes how Florida places more of an onus on its police chiefs and sheriffs to serve as the gatekeepers of the profession.

"At the end of the day, this is your person and you are responsible for reporting their actions to the (state)," said James Schweitzer, director of South Carolina's Department of Public Safety.