Maryanne Trump Barry, the older sister of former President Donald Trump and a former federal judge, passed away at the age of 86 in November 2023.
According to ABC News, Barry was found in her Fifth Avenue apartment around 4 a.m. Until her retirement in 2019, Barry served as a senior judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. She was initially appointed to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey by then-President Ronald Reagan in 1983 and later appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in 1999 by then-President Bill Clinton.
Barry often discussed her father’s wealth and mentioned on numerous occasions that she had “stepped down” to avoid competing with Donald in managing the family business. She told New York Magazine, “I knew better even as a child than to even attempt to compete with Donald. I wouldn’t have been able to win. He was building models when he was very young. Huge buildings.”
In her book “The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire,” she acknowledged Donald’s support in her judicial career, stating, “There’s no question Donald helped me get on the bench. I was good, but not that good.”
Despite their support for each other over the years, The Washington Post released secretly recorded audios in which Barry described Donald Trump as a “cruel” man with “no principles.”
“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,” she was heard saying.
The White House dismissed these allegations at the time.
Barry was married to the late John Barry, a trial and appellate lawyer.
Her death was determined to have no signs of trauma or foul play. Emergency crews responded to a call of a person in cardiac arrest.
May she rest in peace.