Donald Trump’s sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, has retired from her position as a federal appellate judge in Philadelphia, amidst an inquiry into her alleged participation in a Trump family tax dodging scheme.
NBC News says that Barry’s retirement was announced on April 1 by a top court official in New York where the misconduct case against her was filed as to prevent a conflict of interest with Pennsylvania colleagues. The report indicated that Barry’s retirement this month was voluntary, and it brings to an end the review into possible misconduct in reference to financial matters.
The court started looking into the behavior of Barry, 82, after four citizen complaints filed in October after a story ran in The New York Times alleging that Donald Trump and his siblings dodged inheritance taxes.
The order from the New York court did not mention Maryanne Trump Barry by name, but all of the circumstances and the timeline matched up.
Scott Shuchart, an attorney, who was one of the citizens who filed a complaint against Barry, said he was “absolutely disappointed” that the judge was able to end the scrutiny into her finances by retiring.
“If the Times story is correct, then she participated in a decadeslong multimillion-dollar tax fraud. That should be an impeachable offense. She gets her full salary.”
Investigation into Maryanne Trump Barry, President’s sister, ends with her retirement: New York Times https://t.co/oF0KKYWlKz pic.twitter.com/PFFddjiiYd
— Newsreet (@Newsreet_com) April 11, 2019
Shuchart says he believes that as long as Barry is being paid a salary by the government, she shouldn’t be able to dodge such oversight, calling her a “criminal.”
He adds that it’s “ridiculous” that she will continue to make $223,700 a year in retirement. Barry was appointed to the court by President Ronald Reagan, and elevated to the circuit court by President Bill Clinton.
Vox says that though Judge Maryanne Trump Barry retired quietly, it’s a “big deal” as it could be a hint that the president might have evaded taxes himself.
An announcement was made on February 1 that there would be a deep dive into Barry’s finances which would be “receiving the full attention” of federal investigators. Less than two weeks later, the judge filled out the paperwork indicating that she intended to retire.
This combined with Donald Trump’s reluctance to make his tax returns public is raising even more questions about the Trump family wealth, and the manner in which they’ve passed it on tax-free to the next generation. Vox suggests that an examination of Donald Trump’s taxes would possibly reveal what The New York Times alleged about the family patriarch, Fred Trump, and that’s tax evasion.
