There were a lot of potential breakdowns but most of this is perfectly legal.
The shoplifting occurred in a Texas airport. The thief fled the state on an airplane, as did the wrongly arrested man, though he did so innocently.
Police in Texas purportedly ask for information about all passengers on the airline in connection with the crime. [But did they really, or did they ask for something like, “the identity of any man who boarded the aircraft after the time of the crime?” Perhaps, in good faith, American Airlines responded with the identity of the very next man who boarded after that time, which they knew precisely based on when his ticket was scanned. When the police got this information back, they assumed that American Airlines meant that he was the last man to board the flight and that he was the only man who fit their description. "Aha, we’ve got him!, they think. All based on a sincere an ordinary misunderstanding.]
Texas law enforcement gets a warrant for the accused’s arrest, and seeks a warrant that is enforceable out of state. After all, they know the thief fled the state.
The accused gets arrested in New Mexico. New Mexico is enforcing the Texas warrant. I don’t specifically know New Mexico’s process for enforcing fugitive arrest warrants but all states have one. There is no indication police didn’t follow it.
The DailyBeast article (the better of the two) says, “authorities refused to explain to him why he had been accused of criminal mischief and felony burglary of a building.” Taking this at face value, they told him the charges but it’s doubtful they would have known the details. There probably wasn’t more they could have told him and they had no obligation to tell him more.
“It was eight days before he saw a judge, and he was never given a lawyer.” I understand that state’s can generally hold fugitives for 30 days on out-of-state warrants. He saw the judge at an arraignment hearing. This may vary from state to state, but, unless he was interrogated by the police, this is the first point at which he must be told that he has the right to hire a lawyer or have one appointed to him if he requests it. Did he request a lawyer? If he did, the judge will (most likely) remand him to custody until he gets a lawyer. If the police had interrogated him, he would also have had the right to a lawyer but there is no particular reason for police in New Mexico to interrogate anyone about a shoplifting crime that happened in Texas.
So, one way or another, he was remanded to custody for another nine days. He should not have been held longer than 30 days and he should not have appeared again at an arraignment or extradition hearing without counsel (unless he waived his right to counsel).
In jail, the accused was, “Ordered to fully undress and bend over for a ‘demeaning’ strip search, Lowe’s ‘profound’ confusion quickly turned into a ‘constant state of fear,’ his suit claims, as he was housed alongside violent offenders. In one instance, he watched in horror as a young inmate was punched repeatedly in the face; the resulting blood was left on the floor and a wall for days.” This is par for the course. Police search people who get arrested for drugs and guns to help ensure everyone’s safety. He would not have been happier if the “young inmate repeatedly punched in the face” had been stabbed with the hidden knife instead. Jailers treated the accused terribly, but no more terribly than they treat any other prisoner. Consider this the next time you read news accounts of inhumane treatment of prisoners and think, “If they didn’t do anything wrong, they wouldn’t have to worry about how the police treat them!”
His detention stretched on, apparently “without any end in sight,” for 17 days…" Again, they had 30 days.
“[H]e was released without explanation.” From a constitutional perspective, “then why is he complaining?”
“Lowe walked until he found a bus stop, making it back to Flagstaff in the dead of night more than 48 hours after his release.” Well, from a constitutional perspective, that’s his problem. The police don’t owe him bus fare or any post-release support. Maybe he should have phoned a friend.
“According to his suit, Lowe was only able to clear his name after convincing a detective at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport to compare his picture at the time to the surveillance footage of the suspect. All charges against were subsequently dropped.” Charges were dropped. The justice system worked as it should have, right?
or that he was denied legal representation for all that time.