The Atlantic: It Was Sedition
(archive.ph)
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The term itself is stupid. They should just say "fellow citizens".
"Peer" by definition means equal in status. We may not have a caste system, but we definitely have different classes based on geography, wealth, and education among other things. A true jury of your peers would only include people from your class.
Perhaps the founders originally meant equal in status, or people from your class. We may not always like it, and it would make it easier for corrupt politicians and police to get away with murder, but it's supposed to favor the defendant.