MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Maryanne Trump Barry, the eldest sister of former President Donald Trump, breathed her last at the age of 86 on Monday, November 13.
According to a New York Times report, she was discovered in her home on the Upper East Side, in Manhattan, and the cause of her death is unknown at this time.
Even though Barry was a vocal supporter of her brother’s business and political ambitions, she last made headlines when she privately criticized Trump which was recorded by her niece Mary L Trump.
Maryanne Trump Barry was a former federal judge
Barry, a former federal judge, spent years in the legal world before retiring in February 2019 amid an investigation over alleged tax fraud stemming from her father Fred Trump’s real estate empire.
She first made a name for herself in 1974 when she became an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey. Barry was one of only two women in the office.
She was nominated by President Ronald Reagan to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey in 1983. She was then tapped by President Bill Clinton to serve on the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in 1999.
One of the most notable case that occurred in her legal career was in 2006 when she blasted a US Immigration Court judge for allegedly “bullying” an African refugee seeking asylum after several relatives were killed during a coup.
Maryanne Trump Barry repeatedly voiced a need for compassion on immigration issues
The elder Trump has repeatedly voiced a need for compassion on immigration issues over the years, which put her on bad terms with her younger brother in a way that was made public in 2020.
Barry blasted Trump amid news that children were being separated at the border from their parents and being held in cramped quarters while being secretly recorded by her niece, The Washington Post reported.
“All he wants to do is appeal to his base,” Barry told her niece, adding “He has no principles. None. None. And his base, I mean my God, if you were a religious person, you want to help people. Not do this.”
The former president appeared to brush the comments aside, as he has previously acknowledged their opposing stances on the issue.
The siblings were both implicated in a New York Time’s investigation piece regarding their inheritance before Barry's comments were made public. The lawyer was accused of violating judicial conduct by working with her siblings to determine their tax liability.
She, however, shortly retired after the investigation was launched in 2019, which put an end to the probe.
