BAD DECISIONSDale L. JuneHoneytrap (N): A strategy in which an irresistible bait is used to entrap a victim usually of the opposite sex in an effort to compromise them for information or advantage.This is usually done in the form of romantic or sexual relationships.With another United States Secret Service Agent being sent home from an overseas assignment because of an “incident” involving a foreign female, it is important to remember that certain off duty behavior must come with certain restrictions. First is the reminder that when in a foreign country you are an ambassador to your home country, in this case, the United States. Any behavior not in keeping with accepted norms reflects badly on you, your client, and your country.This remined me of a section of my book, Introduction to Executive Protection 4th Edition by Dale June and Elijah Shaw, “Could it be the agent’s proximity to power, his professional, selfconfident and polite manner, or the fact he walks a thin line of possible danger, that makes the protector especially attractive to members of the opposite sex? Call them “groupies,” “roadies” or whatever, but there are always those who will attempt to charm him for their own unfulfilled fantasies or to participate in what they perceive as the high life. Some are brazened enough to appear at the agent’s hotel room door during the middle of the night and seek to bestow special favors. Others will, while the agent is very much occupied in shielding the protectee in a tight crowd situation, make eye contact with the agent, lean warmly and openly against him and slip a note with her name and telephone number into his pocket and whisper in his ear for him to call her after he is off duty. That is a siren song type of a dragon. That can all be very tempting and flattering, especially to a young and inexperienced agent, but complications that can arise from a liaison of that nature have a very high potential for disaster.Obviously, there is the health and safety risk, but additionally, the late-night tryst, may hinder the agent’s performance of duty on an early morning shift, or cause momentary loss of concentration at a very critical time which; of course, could very well be the intent of the provocateur. Not to be forgotten is the possibility of extortion and blackmail for an opportunity to be introduced to the protectee, or an invitation to a special function, etc. One favor begets another or “quid pro quo.”“ The dream angel can quickly turn into a nightmare, and the person who was so flattering and generous could be mentally or emotionally unstable  The dream angel can quickly turn into a nightmare, and the person who was so flattering and generous could be mentally or emotionally unstable, and begin stalking the agent, writing letters, sending gifts, and becoming a potential threat to the effectiveness of the agent. Not to be overlooked, and is a real possibility, the person may be a “front,” seeking intelligence information for later use that in some manner could place the protectee in jeopardy or could cause serious embarrassment to him or the agent and his organization. An agent must be alert to the possibility that he is being used and decline such gracious invitations. It is not the person of the agent that attracts the attention, but rather the position.This same attention must also be applied to the modern protector in the private sector. Just as we use the United States Secret Service as the bar for Protective Standards, we must also take the cautionary tales they provide to heart, as they help us navigate any treacherous minefields ahead of us.Dale L. June is a former U.S. Secret Service Agent serving the Presidential Protective Division at the White House with four presidents. He’s worked directly with executives of multi-national corporations, VIPs, political figures, royalty, and celebrities. An accomplished author, his two most recent works Introduction to Executive Protection (4th Editon) & An Introduction to Celebrity Protection & Touring, co-authored with Elijah Shaw, spent weeks on the best sellers list. Find them both on www.ArmsLengthAway.com/books