Trump's sister just resigned as a judge — thwarting the misconduct probe examining family tax fraud allegations

We don't hear about her much, but President Donald Trump's older sister, Maryanne Trump Barry, is a notable figure in her own right. She's been a federal judge on the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals, where she was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1999.

And she just did something very suspicious.

At 82, she's been an inactive senior judge on the court not hearing cases, according to a New York Times report Wednesday night. But she just stepped down from her position, officially retiring.

The reason? It's not certain, but it appears to be prompted by the Times' previous investigative story that "the Trumps had engaged in dubious tax schemes during the 1990s, including instances of outright fraud, that greatly increased the inherited wealth of Mr. Trump and his siblings."

The report noted: "Judge Barry not only benefited financially from most of those tax schemes, The Times found; she was also in a position to influence the actions taken by her family."

As a result of the Times' revelations about the Trump family taxes, the court opened an investigation into her potential misconduct. (The Times has noted that, while it found the Trumps broke the law, the crimes have likely passed the statute of limitations for any criminal charges.)

Ten days after the court had sent a letter confirming the investigation, the Times found, Barry officially resigned as a judge. As she is no longer a member of the court, the inquiry will be dropped, because it is only authorized to investigate its own members.