A massive state-run database of confidential police files was shut down Thursday out of concern it violated privacy laws, officials said. Through a password-protected Internet site, the system gave police access — sometimes right from their squad cars — to a deep mine of records that included the names of suspects, witnesses and those who have been arrested, convicted and sought gun permits. The network sometimes offered a physical description and also contained juvenile files. Some saw it as the sort of tool that could help police protect citizens, but others decried it as a Big Brother network operating outside the bounds of state regulation. Full Story