A sentencing turkey for Thanksgiving

I had planned to celebrate one of my favorite holidays by doing a reprise of my Giving Thanks post from last year.  However, news I received via e-mail suggests I should devote my one post today to relay news that House Judiciary Chair James Sensenbrenner is working on a real sentencing turkey.  Here are the highlight — really lowlights — of the report I received about new crime legislation in the works:

Rep. Sensenbrenner is planning an omnibus crime bill package that would pass the House on the suspension calendar (so it could not be amended) and be sent to the Senate in hopes that it, or some more palatable version of it, could pass by unanimous consent there before the end of the year.  It could include H.R. 1279 (gang bill); HR 3132 (sex offenses, including obnoxious habeas provision); and HR 1751 (court security bill).

The House sponsor appears to be willing to pare some unpopular parts of the bill to lure the Senate, maybe including the mandatory minimums (like the one for failure to register as a sex offender), maybe other stuff.  They are banking on the fact that the Senate wants a court security bill and maybe others.  The language for this omnibus should be ready by the time the members return from recess.

This is a story to watch closely after the holiday weekend.