A charge of making a false statement to police has been filed against a Westminster man. John Nicholas Coker, 51, was served with a criminal summons on may third.

On Friday, April 20th, at 11:18 AM, the Carroll County Sheriff's Office responded to Coker's home in the 300 block of Gorsuch Road for a shooting.  He  told deputies that he had a confrontation with a man who entered his home, and was shot in the right hand and leg. He was flown to Shock Trauma in Baltimore.

Deputies, State Troopers and Westminster Police officers conducted a search for the suspect, but came up empty.

While at the hospital, authorities say Coker admitted to them that he accidentally shot himself while handling a 22-caliber revolver. He said he was afraid if he told the truth, he would be evicted by his landlord for possessing and discharging a firearm in the home.

Deputies obtained a search and seizure warrant on Coker's home, and recovered the revolver believed to have been used in this incident.

In addition to filing a false report, Coker is also charged violating the terms of his five-year probation. The Maryland Division of Parole and Probation issued an arrest warrant to Coker. He received probation on April 15th, 2010 for failing to stop after a property damage accident. The terms of his probation require  that he not own, posses, use or discharge a firearm.

Coker is currently jailed without bond.

The Sheriff's Office is asking anyone who may have witnessed this incident to contact Detective Fred Timms at 410-386-2900.