SUPERIOR COURT -- Indicating he was appearing as a "third-party intervenor" and not as the person identified in court, Edwin Roman -- who a judge has said is a sovereign citizen -- was detained overnight in the county jail Tuesday.

SUPERIOR COURT -- Indicating he was appearing as a "third-party intervenor" and not as the person identified in court, Edwin Roman -- who a judge has said is a sovereign citizen -- was detained overnight in the county jail Tuesday pending a hearing today after accruing new charges in New York state.

Roman, of Bristol, Conn., appeared in front of Judge N. Peter Conforti where Assistant Prosecutor Jerome Neidhardt argued for the 36-year-old's detention after he was arrested in Nichols, N.Y., on July 11 -- a violation of his pretrial release conditions in Sussex County. Since Roman is representing himself and was unaware Neidhardt had filed the motion, Conforti agreed to detain him overnight, but will allow for additional arguments from both Roman and Neidhardt in court today.

Neidhardt is taking the stance that Roman not only presents a danger to the community but is also at risk for obstructing the criminal justice process should he remain released.

In December 2018, Roman was arrested in Newton following a motor vehicle stop where he was found with a loaded and chambered .45-caliber gun with hollow point bullets on his person and loaded magazines in his glove box. He lied to officers at the time, stating he had no weapons, Neidhardt said, and declined to give identification and fingerprints.

In court Tuesday, Neidhardt said Roman was released on bail conditions shortly after his arrest earlier this month in New York after police found him with a razor-blade knife, a 31/2 -inch folding knife, mace, a tactical knife and a necklace knife during a motor vehicle stop where he was traveling 82 mph in a 55 mph construction zone. Police charged him with obstruction after he failed to disclose his weapons along with aggravated operation of a motor vehicle without a license and speeding in a construction zone.

"He is ex-military -- he knows how to use those knives, it's not just one little pocket knife, it's several tactical knives on his person," Neidhardt argued in court Tuesday. Roman has previously identified himself as an Army veteran.

Appearing with a binder of paperwork, Roman repeatedly interrupted the judge Tuesday, stating he "took offense" to being identified as a sovereign citizen and demanded Neidhardt "show jurisdiction over this case."

Roman, who in a prior hearing demanded half a million dollars from Neidhardt to compensate him for the trespass "against my person" when he was searched during the December 2018 arrest in Newton, said he is requiring the court to take notice of the commercial affidavit and negative averment he has submitted.

According to published law reviews, sovereign citizens are identified by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a "domestic terror threat" who believe state and federal governments are illegitimate. They are prone to "paper terrorism," a term used to describe the amount of frivolous paperwork filed in court, several reviews state.

Roman was inching toward trial on his Sussex County case and Tuesday's hearing was scheduled as a pretrial conference to determine if he could demonstrate he was able to represent himself in the case. According to Neidhardt, there are several tactical and logistical requirements of self-representation in a criminal case.

Roman was indicted by a Sussex County grand jury in January and is facing a second-degree charge of unlawful possession of a weapon along with two fourth-degree charges of obstruction and having possession of hollow point bullets. Roman has insisted his case be dismissed and that the court administrator be disciplined for bring "such false claims" against him.

Lori Comstock can also be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.