(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) — A Charlotte, North Carolina, teacher is suing the charter school he used to work at after he claims he was fired after parents allegedly complained about him teaching a fictional book involving a racially profiled Black teen.

Markayle Gray, a former English teacher at Charlotte Secondary School, claims in a civil lawsuit that was filed on Wednesday that he was terminated from his position as a 7th and 8th-grade teacher on Feb. 2 following backlash from parents over his teaching of the 2017 young adult novel “Dear Martin.”

The 2017 New York Times bestselling novel by Nic Stone follows the story of a Black teenager who was thrown to the ground and handcuffed during an encounter with police. The Ivy League-bound teen writes 10 imaginary letters to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. imagining what the civil rights leader would have done in his position.

Gray contends that he got permission from the school to teach the book, however in January white parents complained about that book claiming it “was divisive and injected what they regarded as unwelcome political views on systemic racial inequality into their children’s classroom,” according to the lawsuit.

“Mr. Gray was never given a written explanation of why he was being terminated and never given a detailed explanation,” Artur Davis, Gray’s attorney, told ABC News. “But there was a reference to complaints about this book being taught, and that was the end of it.”

North Carolina’s Department of Public Instruction did not immediately respond to ABC News’ requests for comment.

ABC News reached out to the school and principal Keisha Rock, who referred all questions to attorneys representing the school.

“Since this is a personnel matter, we are limited in what we can say about the reasons for Mr. Gray’s termination,” attorney Katie Weaver Hartzog told ABC News in a statement. “However, I can say that the termination of Mr. Gray’s employment was based on legitimate, nondiscriminatory, non-retaliatory reasons. The school denies any and all allegations of wrongdoing and intends to vigorously defend the suit.”

“Dear Martin” has been banned in other school districts, including one in Augusta, Georgia, over similar complaints.

Davis claimed that ahead of Black History Month, Gray had a “very intentional conversation” with Rock about what would be an “appropriate curriculum” and that she “specifically said to Mr. Gray that [“Dear Martin”] would be a good book to teach.”

Davis said that Gray assigned the book for students to read in January and intended to include it in his lessons during Black History Month in February.

Gray had been on personal leave for a week before his firing and had not been made aware of any concerns about his performance or of complaints before he was fired, according to Davis.

Davis said that Gray was informed of his firing during a “short meeting” with Rock, where she referenced alleged complaints from parents.

The lawsuit claims the school did not follow its protocols for termination, including terminating an employee mid-year “without a history of corrective action and without any evidence of school policies being violated by the teacher.”

Gray is seeking back pay, front pay, lost benefits and other relief, according to the lawsuit.

Since his termination, Davis said that Gray has had to switch professions and is now working in real estate because his firing in the middle of the school year “has reputationally been very damaging.”

“He now has this stigma that frankly, until there’s a lawsuit, most people didn’t know what happened to him,” Davis said.

Davis said that Gray began his teaching contract at Charlotte Secondary School in the fall and as a Black man, he was drawn to the diversity of the school and its mission to “empower” young people.

“He went into this profession because he was motivated by the idea of inspiring Black teenagers,” Davis said.

“He felt a sense of mission, a sense of calling around working with these young people,” he added.

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(DENVER) — Two men were hurt in an apparently targeted shooting on Thursday as revelers left downtown Denver following a parade for the Denver Nuggets, who won their first NBA title on Monday night.

The two men were hospitalized in serious condition, Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said at a news conference.

Thomas stressed that the shooting is not linked to the parade, describing the shooting as people “armed with weapons, acting irresponsibly.”

Brittany Gioso told ABC News she was on her way home from the parade with a group including her mom when she saw a man a few feet away pull out a gun.

She said she heard three shots and “ran and tried to take cover.”

Gioso, a nurse, said her thought was, “Please don’t shoot me in the back.”

“It’s just so sad,” she said. “Immediately you just want to call your friends and your family … and tell them you’re OK.”

Her mom, Michelle Gioso, said through tears, “We were in a big group and I didn’t know where she was at, I didn’t know she was safe.”

About one hour before the shooting, a Denver police sergeant working at the parade was struck by a firetruck, suffering a significant leg injury, police said.

The sergeant was at the front of the firetruck trying to protect the public from the vehicle when the truck rolled and trapped his leg, the chief said.

The sergeant is now undergoing surgery, the chief said.

On Monday night, 10 people were shot in one of the main areas where crowds were gathered in Denver to celebrate the Nuggets’ victory, police said. All injuries were non-life-threatening.

The shooting stemmed from a drug deal, authorities said, and two suspects were taken into custody.

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(NEW YORK) — Jack Teixeira, the member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard accused of leaking classified documents online, has been indicted by a federal grand jury.

He is facing six counts of willful retention and transmission of classified information relation to the national defense, according to the Justice Department.

Teixeira, 21, is accused of abusing his security clearance to take classified documents and post them on social media sites, according to the Department of Justice.

“The unauthorized removal, retention and transmission of classified information jeopardizes our nation’s security. Individuals granted access to classified materials have a fundamental duty to safeguard the information for the safety of the United States, our active service members, its citizens and its allies,” acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy said in a statement. “We are committed to ensuring that those entrusted with sensitive national security information adhere to the law.”

Each of the charges calls for up to 10 years in prison, if convicted.

Michael Bachrach, an attorney for Teixeira, declined ABC News’ request to comment on the indictment. A spokeswoman for the Teixeira family also declined to comment.

Teixeira enlisted in the Air National Guard on Sept. 26, 2019, according to his service record, and had Top Secret security clearance since 2021, according to the DOJ. He began posting classified documents online in January 2022, according to the Justice Department.

In April, the FBI interviewed a member of a social media chat room where Teixeira allegedly posted classified documents. The member reportedly told the FBI that the person began posting “what appeared to be classified information” around December and described the poster as someone named Jack who appeared to live in Massachusetts and “claimed that he was in the United States Air National Guard,” the original criminal complaint stated.

“As laid out in the indictment, Jack Teixeira was entrusted by the United States government with access to classified national defense information — including information that reasonably could be expected to cause exceptionally grave damage to national security if shared,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “Teixeira is charged with sharing information with users on a social media platform he knew were not entitled to receive it. In doing so, he is alleged to have violated U.S. law and endangered our national security.”

Last month, Teixeira was ordered to remain in custody during a hearing that saw prosecutors allege he was a flight risk, even comparing him to notorious leaker Edward Snowden.

“I am going to grant the government’s motion for detention on each ground,” Judge David Hennessy told the court. “What the record at this point shows is a profound breach.”

The defense had argued Teixeira has cooperated with the investigation, did not intend for the classified information to be widely disseminated and was willing to stay with his parents, who promised to turn him in if he violated bail conditions.

ABC News’ Miles Cohen contributed to this report.

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