SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — Costa Rica’s Congress fell short Monday of the supermajority required to strip President Rodrigo Chaves of immunity in order to prosecute him on corruption charges.
Chaves' opposition needed a 38-vote supermajority, but only managed 34 votes in favor of lifting the president's immunity. Twenty-one lawmakers voted against the effort and two more were absent. It was the first time such a vote had occurred about a sitting president in Costa Rica's history.
Prosecutors allege that Chaves pressured a video producer who had been awarded a contract by the Central American Bank for Economic Integration to give a portion of that money to a former campaign adviser.
Chaves has denied any wrongdoing and says he is the victim of a politically motivated prosecution.
The country’s Supreme Court and a panel of three lawmakers had already allowed the case to proceed to Monday’s vote by the unicameral Legislative Assembly.
That outcome was never assured. Some opposition lawmakers had already said prior to the vote that they would not support lifting the president’s immunity. Combined with members of Chaves’ Social Democratic Progress Party, those supporting his prosecution may fall short of the necessary votes.
Chaves' presidency ends next May. His Social Democratic Progress Party's presidential candidate for the next election, Laura Fernández, has already said she will ask him to be part of her Cabinet, giving him another four years of immunity from prosecution.
FILE - Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves speaks to supporters after addressing a legislative committee considering a request from the Supreme Court to lift his immunity so he can stand trial on corruption charges in San Jose, Costa Rica, Aug. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Diaz, File)
Set to miss the playoffs for the first time in a decade, the Toronto Maple Leafs fired general manager Brad Treliving on Monday night, ending his tenure late in his third season in charge of one of the NHL's most popular and talked about teams.
Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment president Keith Pelley announced the abrupt change before Toronto played at Anaheim.
“Throughout the course of this season, there has been deep analysis into both the current state of the Maple Leafs organization and the direction needed to achieve the ultimate goal of delivering a Stanley Cup championship to the city,” Pelley said in a statement. “Brad Treliving is a man that we all have deep respect for, but it was determined that the club must chart a new course under different leadership.”
It’s unclear what the move means for the future of coach Craig Berube, whom Treliving hired in May 2024. Berube won the Cup with St. Louis in 2019.
The Leafs have not won it since 1967 and are on the verge of being eliminated from playoff contention this season. This core — led by Auston Matthews — reached the playoffs nine consecutive years but won just two series in that time.
Cutting ties with Treliving came just before a rematch against the Ducks, a little over two weeks since one of the touchpoints of Toronto's woeful few months. Matthews was injured March 12 on a knee-on-knee hit from Radko Gudas and none of his teammates responded to a play that incurred a five-game suspension.
Max Domi fought Gudas off the opening faceoff Monday night, and he and his teammates racked up 59 penalty minutes in the first two periods — more than any game during Treliving's time as GM.
Treliving was hired in May 2023 after then-president of hockey operations Brendan Shanahan fired GM Kyle Dubas. Shanahan did not have his contract renewed last year following a second-round exit, and no one took his spot in between Pelley and Treliving in the organizational pecking order.
Shanahan, Dubas and predecessor Lou Lamoriello constructed the top of the roster, from Matthews and John Tavares to Mitch Marner and William Nylander. Treliving was running the team last summer when Marner's most recent contract expired and recouped some value in a sign-and-trade with Vegas rather than losing him for nothing in free agency.
Treliving, who was in his second NHL GM job following a lengthy stint with the Calgary Flames from 2014-23, was responsible for a handful of significant moves during his tenure in Toronto. That included an ill-fated March 2025 deal for defenseman Brandon Carlo that included sending Fraser Minten and a first-round pick to Boston.
His final acts were selling moves at the most recent deadline, trading Scott Laughton to Los Angeles and Bobby McMann to Seattle.
AP freelance writer Mike DiGiovanna in Anaheim, California, contributed to this report.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
FILE - Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving holds an NHL hockey press conference at the Ford Performance Centre, in Toronto, Thursday, May 29, 2025. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
