A friend of mine was wrongfully arrested for stealing?

I may have worded the question wrong but here goes. A friend of mine was wrongfully accused of stealing checks from his job. The company supposedly did a quick investigation, didn't find the stolen property and then fired him. When security escorted him out the building, the police were outside waiting for him, then took him to jail. A few hours later he released and the officers at the jail told him that the charges had been dropped. Was this legal and if not should he seek a lawyer?
Sounds like there was insufficient proof to charge him. Unless he can show that there wasn't probable cause for his arrest, he's unlikely to win a wrongful arrest suit. Not worth the time or the money.

As for his job. Unless he has a contract, most states are 'at will' and he can be fired without notice and without cause (or for cause), as long as illegal discrimination wasn't at play.

If his company believes he stole, he won't get the job back. And there's nothing he can do about it. However, when giving references, he'll need to be careful.
It was legal but I would seek an attorney and maybe sue for defamation!
He can file a defamation case against his employer in whose office he was arrested on false charges and humiliated in the presence of his colleages.
He was stealin' when he should of been buying.


Answer:
I'd seek a lawyer, they fired him and embarassed him and may have ruined his reputation, he deserves some sort of compensation to say the least!
Umm, this depends on the laws in your state. Some states are known as 'right to work' states; in these states, a person generally can be fired for anything at the discretion of the employer. Even in right to work states, however, racial discrimination is illegal and a person does have a cause of action if the firing was for discriminatory purposes. You have to determine whether your state is a right to work state, or has some similar law.
NO IT WAS NOT LEGAL YOUR FRIEND SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUSPENDED ON FULL PAY , WHILE THEY CHECKED THE ALLEGATIONS THEN IF NOT GUILTY SHOULD HAVE GONE STRAIGHT BACK TO WORK