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A former British sailor acquitted of a Shearwater sexual assault wants his accuser charged for allegedly lying to police and the court.

On Monday, Darren Smalley filed a complaint with Halifax Regional Police accusing the woman of perjury, obstruction of justice and public mischief.

Police charged Smalley four years ago with sexual assault causing bodily harm and sexual assault with one or more persons at a 12 Wing Shearwater barracks after a drinking party that took place there April 10, 2015.

He was acquitted of all charges on Jan. 18.

Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Patrick Duncan found Smalley’s accuser “elected to deceive while under oath,” leaving the judge with reasonable doubt in the case.

Despite being found not guilty, Smalley, who returned to the U.K. the day after his verdict, said he continues to face repercussions.

“I do have the empathy and compassion for genuine people, however there are people who lie and make these things up.” - Darren Smalley

“I’ve lost my reputation and everything due to a lie,” he said. “Now I’ve got a stigma. Something I’m likely never going to lose.”

Smalley was medically discharged from the Royal Navy for mental health issues and is currently unemployed.

“It took a couple of months for my feelings and different emotions to sort of start to settle,” Smalley said.

“I sat down and did a lot of soul searching and when I was clear in my head, that was when I initially contacted Halifax police.”

Smalley filed a complaint with Halifax police last week, but it was passed off to the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service.

The complaint was later returned to Halifax police and filed with a detective constable on Monday.

Smalley was one of four British sailors originally charged in the case. But charges against two of the men were dropped, while the other was stayed.

The sexual assault complainant and her friend met the men, members of a navy hockey team in Halifax for a tournament, through Tinder.

'There’s no checks or balances in the system'

At Smalley’s trial, the complainant, whose name is banned from publication, testified she lost consciousness while lying next to one of the men and later awoke lying face down as at least three men sexually assaulted her.

Duncan found “very serious problems with the credibility and reliability” of the woman’s testimony.

Daniel Brown, a criminal defence lawyer in Toronto, said his clients often express interest in perjury charges against the complainant, but don’t follow through.

“Almost never would you see someone charged with perjury stemming from a complaint in a sex assault case that wasn’t proven in court,” said Brown.

A complainant in one of his previous cases admitted under oath they were lying and police did not pursue charges, said Brown.

“There is almost no consequences to somebody who comes forward and lies under oath in a sexual assault prosecution and that’s a scary thing, because there’s no checks or balances in the system,” said Brown.

Brown said people acquitted of sexual assault may consider suing somebody in civil court for lying under oath.

“A lot of people will turn to the civil law process as a way to address these types of sleights against them or false allegations against them, just to use a lower standard of proof,” Brown said.

In 2013, the provincial Justice Department rejected Ernest Fenwick MacIntosh’s request to consider perjury charges against two complainants who had accused him of sexual assault.

MacIntosh was originally convicted of 17 charges of indecent assault and gross indecency for sexually assaulting four teenage boys during the 1970s. But the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal later stayed those convictions, ruling that his right to a quick and fair trial had been violated.

Jackie Stevens, executive director at the Avalon Sexual Assault Centre, said charges against a complainant would be harmful to other sexual assault survivors.

“It really does seem like if someone is taking those measures that it’s another way of showing power and control over victims of sexualized violence and it’s a way to silence and shame further people who have been victimized,” said Stevens.

“Many people who do report to police talk about being not believed or threatened with charges because they’re not being believed ... That has been a reality for a lot of people over the years.

“I understand the impacts of being accused of sexualized violence, and that would be something horrible to live with ... particularly (for) people who are indicating their innocence, but think about those long-term impacts on victims of survivors as well,” said Stevens.

Smalley said he’s not looking to deter sexual assault survivors from coming forward to the police.

“I do have the empathy and compassion for genuine people, however there are people who lie and make these things up,” he said.

“Pretty much three years and nine months of my life I will never get back.”

The Chronicle Herald reached out to the sexual assault complainant for comment, but she did not respond.