Ken Behring
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Eugene Behring is a real-estate developer, former owner of the Seattle Seahawks
football team, and philanthropist.
. His family moved to Monroe, Wisconsin
, when he was four. He grew up in poverty; his father worked in a lumber yard
, and his mother cleaned houses. Ken started working a variety of jobs around town starting at age seven: mowing lawns, caddying, transporting milk, selling newspapers, working at a grocery store and at a lumberyard. He became a salesperson at Montgomery Ward
at age 16, and started a side business selling sporting goods
in town. Behring attended Monroe High School
in Monroe, Wisconsin
. A high school football player, he received a partial football scholarship to the University of Wisconsin–Madison
, but dropped out of college due to an injury that left him unable to play football, and therefore ineligible for his scholarship.
and Chrysler
auto dealership. At age 21, he started a used car
business called Behring Motors in Monroe, Wisconsin. He went on to own Car-a-Mat, a chain of car wash
es. A savvy businessman, he was earning $50,000 a year and had $1 million in assets by age 27.
Ken Behring moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida
in 1956 and started the Behring Construction Company. He became a land developer, founding Tamarac Lakes, a new active-adult (which later became all-age) community in 1962. It was built on an area that was formerly wetlands, pastures, and fields
. The new development was incorporated as Tamarac, Florida
("Car-a-Mat" spelled backwards) on July 25, 1963.
Behring's company eventually became the largest builder of single-family home
s in Florida
, and the tenth largest in the United States.
In 1972, Behring moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
, where he was involved in developing the country club at Blackhawk, California
, and later, the Canyon Lakes Development in San Ramon, California
.
In 1988, Behring and partner Ken Hofmann
purchased the NFL's Seattle Seahawks
football team for $79 or $99 million (both numbers have been reported). They transferred the team's operations to Anaheim, California
in 1996, a widely criticized move, although the team continued to play in Seattle. They sold the team to Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen
in 1997, for $200 million.
Behring has been listed several times on the annual Forbes 400
list of richest Americans, including 1991, 1995, and 1997. In 1997, his last year on the list, he ranked #395, with an estimated net worth
of $495 million. He's since been described in the press as a billionaire.
In 2004, Behring published a memoir called Road to Purpose: One Man's Journey Bringing Hope to Millions and Finding Purpose Along the Way (ISBN 0-9761912-0-2).
Behring was made a member of the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans
in 2006.
(originally the Blackhawk Automotive Museum) in 1988, created, in part, to house his personal collection of vintage car
s; he was criticized for the tax exemption
he sought and received for donating his cars to his museum.
Behring pledged $20 million to the Smithsonian Institution
's National Museum of Natural History
in 1997, with the intention that it be used for educational purposes. At the time, the money was allocated for refurbishing the museum's rotunda, supporting a traveling exhibition, and endowing the museum's new Kenneth E. Behring Family Hall of Mammals, which opened in 2003. There was some controversy around the terms of the donation, linked to Behring's endangered species hunting controversy.
He pledged another $80 million to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History
in 2000. Of the $80 million, $20 million was allocated for a hall honoring "American legends and legacies," paying "tribute to deceased individuals who made great contributions to our country and who truly epitomize the 'American spirit", $4 million paid for an exhibition on the American presidency, and another $16 million funded an exhibit called "The Price of Freedom: Americans at War," opened in 2004. In return, Behring's contract required that the museum rename its main facility the "Behring Center." MuseumNews called Behring's donation "purportedly the largest cash donation ever to be given to a U.S. museum by a living person," and Behring was given the Smithsonian's James Smithson
Award for his contributions. In 2001, a memorandum by a group of curators and scholars at the Museum of American History expressed concerns about Behring's gift, and criticized the museum for hiring Behring's personal architect to do a study on modernizing the museum's exhibition space; a Smithsonian official denied accusations of impropriety. According to The New York Times, Behring's gift was also then criticized in the museum world, as some museum professionals charged that he had been given too much power to "dictate the nature and content of the museum's exhibitions."
In 2000, Behring also donated $7.5 million to expand the University of California, Berkeley
's Principal Leadership Institute; the newly established Kenneth E. Behring Center for Educational Improvement focused on training programs for public school principals, providing scholarships for 50 aspiring principals every year. UC Berkeley awarded him a Chancellor's Citation in 2001.
Behring founded the Wheelchair Foundation
in Blackhawk, California
in 2000, to provide free wheelchair
s for people with physical disabilities in developing nations
unable to afford one. He founded the WaterLeaders Foundation, a nonprofit working to support safe drinking water around the world, in 2005. In a 2010 interview, he reported having given away between $200 and $300 million, and his interest in issues of global health.
reported that "Behring...settled several sex harassment claims in recent years." The most prominent of these cases was the 1996 allegation by former employee Patricia Parker that she had been sexually harassed over the course of two years, and assaulted at a New Year's Day event, while being "required to cover for Behring's sexual activities and liaisions in the executive offices with a number of women." The New York Times
reported that Parker "accused Behring of making advances, asking her to pick up his prescription sex-enhancing drugs and requiring she keep waivers on hand for his potential sex partners to sign away their rights to demand money of him." Behring denied the charges, and the case was settled out of court in 1996.
organization Safari Club International
. He has made multiple safari trips to East Africa, and has shot lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, an elephant, and an endangered bighorn sheep. Behring has been criticized for his trophy hunting practices and animal conservation ethics.
In 1997, Behring shot an endangered Kara Tau argali
sheep in Kazakhstan
(only 100 remained in the world at the time). Behring claimed he had permits to shoot the sheep and had Russian scientists in his hunting party; he was issued export permits two days before the enactment of a prior international decision to move Kara Tau argali to the most-endangered status. Per American law, the remains of the endangered animal could not be legally imported into the United States. Behring donated $20 million to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History six weeks later, offering his private collection of stuffed hunting trophies to the museum, including four rare bighorn sheep
, one of which was the Kara Tau argali sheep. The Smithsonian attempted to import the remains by petitioning the Department of the Interior for an Endangered Species Act
waiver, but withdrew its request after questioning and negative publicity from Representative George Miller
and groups like the Humane Society of the United States
. Behring maintained that he had broken no laws, and had shot the animal legally while assisting Kazakh scientists. The National Museum of Natural History subsequently reevaluated their acquisitions policies in light of the charges.
In 1998, Behring shot and killed an elephant
in Mozambique
, where the sport killing of elephants was banned in 1990. His hunting companions, the then past and current presidents of Safari Club International, killed two more elephants. Mozambican wildlife officials believed that the group had come "to survey investment opportunities" in Cabo Delgado province. The group was given a permit by the governor to shoot a lion, a leopard and a buffalo; a local wildlife official also added a note referring to "problem elephants," the only exception to the national ban on the killing of elephants. According to Arlito Cuco, head of Mozambique's wildlife service, a federal investigation showed that the hunt was illegal because it did not target problem elephants, and that two of the elephant tusks had gone missing. Local investigators also reported that the group used a helicopter during the hunt, which "drove the elephants onto their guns" -- a charge they denied. According to the New York Times, Behring's spokesperson "sent a reporter a copy of a $5,000 check, dated six weeks after the hunt and made out to the provincial government with the notation 'elephant permit.'" The then-director of the game reserve near where the elephants had been killed was skeptical, telling ABC News
PrimeTime
"They came in there and bankrolled an operation to take out some big elephant, and it is wrong. And nobody, nobody can condone what happened."
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
football team, and philanthropist.
Early years
Behring was born in Freeport, IllinoisFreeport, Illinois
Freeport is a city in and the county seat of Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 26,443 at the 2000 census. The mayor of Freeport is George W...
. His family moved to Monroe, Wisconsin
Monroe, Wisconsin
Monroe, known as "the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA", is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population, was 10,843 at the 2000 census. The city is located partially within the Town of Monroe and partially in the Town of Clarno.-Geography:Monroe is located...
, when he was four. He grew up in poverty; his father worked in a lumber yard
Lumber yard
A lumber yard is a retail location for lumber and wood related products used in construction and/or home improvement projects. Lumber yards can also provide services such as the use of a planer and other large machines....
, and his mother cleaned houses. Ken started working a variety of jobs around town starting at age seven: mowing lawns, caddying, transporting milk, selling newspapers, working at a grocery store and at a lumberyard. He became a salesperson at Montgomery Ward
Montgomery Ward
Montgomery Ward is an online retailer that carries the same name as the former American department store chain, founded as the world's #1 mail order business in 1872 by Aaron Montgomery Ward, and which went out of business in 2001...
at age 16, and started a side business selling sporting goods
Sports equipment
Sports equipment is a general term for any object used for sport or exercise. Examples of sports equipment include:-Exercise equipment:Examples for exercise include swiss balls, weights, equipment for the gym...
in town. Behring attended Monroe High School
Monroe High School (Wisconsin)
For schools with a similar name, see Monroe High School.Monroe High School is a high school in Monroe, Green County, Wisconsin. It is part of the School District of Monroe...
in Monroe, Wisconsin
Monroe, Wisconsin
Monroe, known as "the Swiss Cheese Capital of the USA", is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population, was 10,843 at the 2000 census. The city is located partially within the Town of Monroe and partially in the Town of Clarno.-Geography:Monroe is located...
. A high school football player, he received a partial football scholarship to the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
, but dropped out of college due to an injury that left him unable to play football, and therefore ineligible for his scholarship.
Career
Out of college, Behring, a car buff, worked as a salesperson at a ChevroletChevrolet
Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918...
and Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
auto dealership. At age 21, he started a used car
Pre-owned vehicle
A used car, a pre-owned vehicle, or a second hand car, is a vehicle that has previously had one or more retail owners. Used cars are sold through a variety of outlets, including franchise and independent car dealers, rental car companies, leasing offices, auctions, and private party sales...
business called Behring Motors in Monroe, Wisconsin. He went on to own Car-a-Mat, a chain of car wash
Car wash
A car wash or auto wash is a facility used to clean the exterior and, in some cases, the interior of motor vehicles.- Categories :...
es. A savvy businessman, he was earning $50,000 a year and had $1 million in assets by age 27.
Ken Behring moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
in 1956 and started the Behring Construction Company. He became a land developer, founding Tamarac Lakes, a new active-adult (which later became all-age) community in 1962. It was built on an area that was formerly wetlands, pastures, and fields
Field (agriculture)
In agriculture, the word field refers generally to an area of land enclosed or otherwise and used for agricultural purposes such as:* Cultivating crops* Usage as a paddock or, generally, an enclosure of livestock...
. The new development was incorporated as Tamarac, Florida
Tamarac, Florida
Tamarac is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,427. It is part of the Miami–Fort Lauderdale–Pompano Beach Metropolitan Statistical Area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010 census....
("Car-a-Mat" spelled backwards) on July 25, 1963.
Behring's company eventually became the largest builder of single-family home
Single-family home
A single-family detached home, also called a single-detached dwelling or separate house is a free-standing residential building. It is defined in opposition to a multi-family dwelling.- Definitions :...
s in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, and the tenth largest in the United States.
In 1972, Behring moved to the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
, where he was involved in developing the country club at Blackhawk, California
Blackhawk, California
Blackhawk is an unincorporated master planned community and census-designated place located in Contra Costa County, California, east of Danville and Oakland. The ZIP Code is 94506. The community is inside area code 925.-Blackhawk Ranch, 1917 to 1979:...
, and later, the Canyon Lakes Development in San Ramon, California
San Ramon, California
-2010 census:The 2010 United States Census reported that San Ramon had a population of 72,148. The population density was 3,991.1 people per square mile...
.
In 1988, Behring and partner Ken Hofmann
Ken Hofmann
Kenneth Harry Hofmann is a builder, real estate developer and philanthropist who is best known for being the former owner of both the Seattle Seahawks and the Oakland Athletics....
purchased the NFL's Seattle Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
football team for $79 or $99 million (both numbers have been reported). They transferred the team's operations to Anaheim, California
Anaheim, California
Anaheim is a city in Orange County, California. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was about 365,463, making it the most populated city in Orange County, the 10th most-populated city in California, and ranked 54th in the United States...
in 1996, a widely criticized move, although the team continued to play in Seattle. They sold the team to Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen
Paul Allen
Paul Gardner Allen is an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. Allen co-founded Microsoft with Bill Gates...
in 1997, for $200 million.
Behring has been listed several times on the annual Forbes 400
Forbes 400
The Forbes 400 or 400 Richest Americans is a list published by Forbes Magazine magazine of the wealthiest 400 Americans, ranked by net worth. The list is published annually in September, and 2010 marks the 29th issue. The 400 was started by Malcom Forbes in 1982 and treats those in the list like...
list of richest Americans, including 1991, 1995, and 1997. In 1997, his last year on the list, he ranked #395, with an estimated net worth
Net worth
In business, net worth is the total assets minus total outside liabilities of an individual or a company. For a company, this is called shareholders' preference and may be referred to as book value. Net worth is stated as at a particular year in time...
of $495 million. He's since been described in the press as a billionaire.
In 2004, Behring published a memoir called Road to Purpose: One Man's Journey Bringing Hope to Millions and Finding Purpose Along the Way (ISBN 0-9761912-0-2).
Behring was made a member of the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans
Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans
The Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans is a nonprofit organization based in Alexandria, Virginia, that was founded in 1947 to honor the achievements of outstanding Americans who have succeeded in spite of adversity and to emphasize the importance of higher education...
in 2006.
Family
Behring married his wife Patricia (Pat) at age 21. They have five sons, and as of 2005, ten grandchildren.Philanthrophy
Behring was involved in founding the Blackhawk MuseumBlackhawk Museum
The Blackhawk Museum is a museum in Blackhawk, California, best known for its significant collection of classic cars.The museum houses about ninety classic cars. It also houses a display showcasing the work of the Wheelchair Foundation . The facility is located within the Blackhawk Plaza outdoors...
(originally the Blackhawk Automotive Museum) in 1988, created, in part, to house his personal collection of vintage car
Vintage car
A vintage car is commonly defined as a car built between the start of 1919 and the end of 1930 known as the "Vintage era". There is little debate about the start date of the vintage period—the end of World War I is a nicely defined marker there—but the end date is a matter of a little...
s; he was criticized for the tax exemption
Tax exemption
Various tax systems grant a tax exemption to certain organizations, persons, income, property or other items taxable under the system. Tax exemption may also refer to a personal allowance or specific monetary exemption which may be claimed by an individual to reduce taxable income under some...
he sought and received for donating his cars to his museum.
Behring pledged $20 million to the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
's National Museum of Natural History
National Museum of Natural History
The National Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. Admission is free and the museum is open 364 days a year....
in 1997, with the intention that it be used for educational purposes. At the time, the money was allocated for refurbishing the museum's rotunda, supporting a traveling exhibition, and endowing the museum's new Kenneth E. Behring Family Hall of Mammals, which opened in 2003. There was some controversy around the terms of the donation, linked to Behring's endangered species hunting controversy.
He pledged another $80 million to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. Among the items on display are the original Star-Spangled Banner and Archie Bunker's...
in 2000. Of the $80 million, $20 million was allocated for a hall honoring "American legends and legacies," paying "tribute to deceased individuals who made great contributions to our country and who truly epitomize the 'American spirit", $4 million paid for an exhibition on the American presidency, and another $16 million funded an exhibit called "The Price of Freedom: Americans at War," opened in 2004. In return, Behring's contract required that the museum rename its main facility the "Behring Center." MuseumNews called Behring's donation "purportedly the largest cash donation ever to be given to a U.S. museum by a living person," and Behring was given the Smithsonian's James Smithson
James Smithson
James Smithson, FRS, M.A. was a British mineralogist and chemist noted for having left a bequest in his will to the United States of America, to create "an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men" to be called the Smithsonian Institution.-Biography:Not much is known...
Award for his contributions. In 2001, a memorandum by a group of curators and scholars at the Museum of American History expressed concerns about Behring's gift, and criticized the museum for hiring Behring's personal architect to do a study on modernizing the museum's exhibition space; a Smithsonian official denied accusations of impropriety. According to The New York Times, Behring's gift was also then criticized in the museum world, as some museum professionals charged that he had been given too much power to "dictate the nature and content of the museum's exhibitions."
In 2000, Behring also donated $7.5 million to expand the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
's Principal Leadership Institute; the newly established Kenneth E. Behring Center for Educational Improvement focused on training programs for public school principals, providing scholarships for 50 aspiring principals every year. UC Berkeley awarded him a Chancellor's Citation in 2001.
Behring founded the Wheelchair Foundation
Wheelchair Foundation
The Wheelchair Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in June 2000 by real estate developer Ken Behring, and based in Danville, California. The foundation partners with donors to provide wheelchairs to people who need them but can not afford them, mostly in developing nations...
in Blackhawk, California
Blackhawk, California
Blackhawk is an unincorporated master planned community and census-designated place located in Contra Costa County, California, east of Danville and Oakland. The ZIP Code is 94506. The community is inside area code 925.-Blackhawk Ranch, 1917 to 1979:...
in 2000, to provide free wheelchair
Wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, designed to be a replacement for walking. The device comes in variations where it is propelled by motors or by the seated occupant turning the rear wheels by hand. Often there are handles behind the seat for someone else to do the pushing...
s for people with physical disabilities in developing nations
Developing country
A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...
unable to afford one. He founded the WaterLeaders Foundation, a nonprofit working to support safe drinking water around the world, in 2005. In a 2010 interview, he reported having given away between $200 and $300 million, and his interest in issues of global health.
Sexual harassment
A 1999 story in Seattle WeeklySeattle Weekly
Seattle Weekly is a freely distributed newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by Darrell Oldham and David Brewster as The Weekly...
reported that "Behring...settled several sex harassment claims in recent years." The most prominent of these cases was the 1996 allegation by former employee Patricia Parker that she had been sexually harassed over the course of two years, and assaulted at a New Year's Day event, while being "required to cover for Behring's sexual activities and liaisions in the executive offices with a number of women." The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
reported that Parker "accused Behring of making advances, asking her to pick up his prescription sex-enhancing drugs and requiring she keep waivers on hand for his potential sex partners to sign away their rights to demand money of him." Behring denied the charges, and the case was settled out of court in 1996.
Hunting
Behring started hunting as a young boy, to help provide food for his family. He became an avid big-game hunter as an adult, and a president of huntingHunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
organization Safari Club International
Safari Club International
Safari Club International is an international organization composed of hunters. SCI has more than 50,000 members and 180 local chapters. SCI's website displays the bannertext "Safari Club International is the Leader in Protecting the Freedom to Hunt and Promoting Wildlife Conservation...
. He has made multiple safari trips to East Africa, and has shot lions, leopards, rhinoceroses, an elephant, and an endangered bighorn sheep. Behring has been criticized for his trophy hunting practices and animal conservation ethics.
In 1997, Behring shot an endangered Kara Tau argali
Argali
The argali, or the mountain sheep is a wild sheep, which roams the highlands of Central Asia . It is the biggest wild sheep, standing at the shoulder, measuring long and weighing , with a maximum known weight of...
sheep in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
(only 100 remained in the world at the time). Behring claimed he had permits to shoot the sheep and had Russian scientists in his hunting party; he was issued export permits two days before the enactment of a prior international decision to move Kara Tau argali to the most-endangered status. Per American law, the remains of the endangered animal could not be legally imported into the United States. Behring donated $20 million to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History six weeks later, offering his private collection of stuffed hunting trophies to the museum, including four rare bighorn sheep
Bighorn Sheep
The bighorn sheep is a species of sheep in North America named for its large horns. These horns can weigh up to , while the sheep themselves weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates that there are three distinct subspecies of Ovis canadensis, one of which is endangered: Ovis canadensis sierrae...
, one of which was the Kara Tau argali sheep. The Smithsonian attempted to import the remains by petitioning the Department of the Interior for an Endangered Species Act
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
waiver, but withdrew its request after questioning and negative publicity from Representative George Miller
George Miller (politician)
George Miller III is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1975. He is a member of the Democratic Party. From 2007 through 2010, Miller served as chairman of the Education and Labor Committee, formerly known as the Education and the Workforce Committee.-Early life, education, and early...
and groups like the Humane Society of the United States
Humane Society of the United States
The Humane Society of the United States , based in Washington, D.C., is the largest animal advocacy organization in the world. In 2009, HSUS reported assets of over US$160 million....
. Behring maintained that he had broken no laws, and had shot the animal legally while assisting Kazakh scientists. The National Museum of Natural History subsequently reevaluated their acquisitions policies in light of the charges.
In 1998, Behring shot and killed an elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
in Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, where the sport killing of elephants was banned in 1990. His hunting companions, the then past and current presidents of Safari Club International, killed two more elephants. Mozambican wildlife officials believed that the group had come "to survey investment opportunities" in Cabo Delgado province. The group was given a permit by the governor to shoot a lion, a leopard and a buffalo; a local wildlife official also added a note referring to "problem elephants," the only exception to the national ban on the killing of elephants. According to Arlito Cuco, head of Mozambique's wildlife service, a federal investigation showed that the hunt was illegal because it did not target problem elephants, and that two of the elephant tusks had gone missing. Local investigators also reported that the group used a helicopter during the hunt, which "drove the elephants onto their guns" -- a charge they denied. According to the New York Times, Behring's spokesperson "sent a reporter a copy of a $5,000 check, dated six weeks after the hunt and made out to the provincial government with the notation 'elephant permit.'" The then-director of the game reserve near where the elephants had been killed was skeptical, telling ABC News
ABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
PrimeTime
Primetime (TV series)
Primetime is an American news magazine show which debuted on ABC in 1989 with co-hosts Sam Donaldson and Diane Sawyer and originally had the title Primetime Live.-Early history:...
"They came in there and bankrolled an operation to take out some big elephant, and it is wrong. And nobody, nobody can condone what happened."
See also
- Seattle SeahawksSeattle SeahawksThe Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
: includes discussion of Behring's ownership of team - Blackhawk, CaliforniaBlackhawk, CaliforniaBlackhawk is an unincorporated master planned community and census-designated place located in Contra Costa County, California, east of Danville and Oakland. The ZIP Code is 94506. The community is inside area code 925.-Blackhawk Ranch, 1917 to 1979:...
: discusses Behring's development plans, and community opposition