>> welcome to al jazeera america. i'm stephanie sy. here are the top stories we are following: the senate approved a sweeping defense bill addressing sexual assault in the military. it will block commanders from overturning court martial decisions. it goes to president obama for his signature. >> russian president vladimir putin signed a decree to pardon gaoled oil ty can -- ty can mikhail khordorkovsky, he argued he was gaoled for opposing vo t

vladimir putin >> president obama reduced eight prisoners sentences. the obama administration was looking at drug crimes and seeing if original sentencing was fair. punishment for crack co-cane was more severe than other forms of the drugs. >> the apollo theatre's roof collapsed. 76 were injured. 7 seriously. the cause of the collapse is not yet known. those are the headlines. you can always get us on aljazeera.com. becoming one? one of the biggest credit card thefts in retail history, and why you may be a victim. also tonight, an al jazeera exclusive. the shocking

findingses of an in dependent investigation into the terrifies treatment of the disabled behind bars. because it is so believe, farfetched because of the way we treat people in prison, not just the deaf, and deaf, blind, and blind, the way we treat people in the prison system is terrifying. >> comments to america tonight. >> when i entered the car, my wife said look at your hand, it's shaking. and it was.

good etching thank you for joining us. a new worry, being targeted by credit card thieves at target. in just the last few weeks had their credit card numbers lifted. underscoring the number one complaint, identity theft. target says 40 million customers information was grabbed by the thieves in the short period between thanksgiving and last thursday. your scared number, name, and that security code, well they can be sold on the black market and used to make counter fits. this was one of the biggist of its kind. other attacking oen the

parent of tj max stores. 94 million credit cards stolen 134 numbers stolen from heartland payment systems a year later. a worldwide identity fraud scheme. in which 160 credit card numbers were stolen. from companies like visa, j.c. penny, and jet blue. nearly 15 million americans are victims each year, and identity theft is growing. 15 to 20% every year, the crimes not only come at a cost to ordinary americans but to our economy as well. in 2012, the united states lost a total of $21 billion to identity theft.

joining us to explain how they do their work, dan. who admits he is a former credit card thief himself. that is quite an admission, makes us wonder how does someone get to be a credit card thief? >> well, what would would do is kit be a progression. a lot of people get started in hacking computers are that's how i got my start. and then slow he progress through this process. >> how much money did you make? >> well, that's the golden question. but i never actually tracked it. on the order of hundreds of thousands. >> hundreds of thousands of dollars. how exactly did you do it? i always think it has something to do with

someone digging through your garbage for slips, or what is it? how did you do it? >> it is much more hi-tech now. you can hack ecommerce sites, and get access to their credit cards or in this case, you can attack a retailer like target, and breech their computer systems and gather the data as it is being taken from the consumer. you can get a lot of information from this 40 million cards can is a lot of money. >> how did you do it? >> well, i would hack online stores and then eventually i also would just buy them. you can buy and sell any of this information at a low cost. >> in a case like this where we are talking about 40 million credit card numbers getting picked up, that doesn't mean they will yules all of those they can sell

them off? >> that's right. what they do is bring them to on line places and sell them, often in bulk, to other people who will use them. so somebody like me, i have to confess i was at target, and i suppose i'm as susceptible as anybody on this. what happens my number turns into what somebody else's credit card? >> what happens is when you swipe your card, that data gets passed on and processed to the transaction, but in this case it sounds like they collected that data that is on that strip. and what they can then do is take it and clone it on to another card. they can tate european union to the store and just buy things with it. >> do you use credit

cards yourselves these days? have a lot of cards i still use them. >> all right. that's good advice for us all anyway, appreciate your being with us. join eva who is from the identity theft resource center, we heard what dan said, it's -- should there be a great deal of concern on the part of someone like me who is probably susceptible to this theft? >> yes, there should be some concern. we know that consumer whose have received notices and they they shopped at target during the time, are anxious, right now. we aren couraging people to react, however don't panic. your information has been compromised, however, you are not at this time an identity theft victim necessarily.

there's two steps that occur. and then that has to be monotized. so in some ways the thieves that took this information they have to start trying to purchase goods and services. and you don't know if and when that will happen. so both consumers we would encouraging them to check their statements or credit card statements. really religiously. if you are one of the victims you want to kick it up a notch and do it more frequently. >> mass the loss to ?e am i going to be held responsible? >> no, you won't be held responsible for charges that are fraudulent on your credit card. so the financial loss to someone on credit card charges will be zero.

because this is such a large breech, when individuals call in and notice fraudulent activity and say that's not mine, they will most likely have them reversed right away. for the people that used a debit card, you want to contact your financial institution, and ask them about the procedure that they would recommend jew go through. >> is there any indication that i or anyone else who might have been in this pool of people should cancel our credit carts and start over. >> that's always a choice, we won't discouraging people from doing that if it gives them peace of minds. it can't hurt. at this time it's not something you must do. certainly i if you notice

even one small that does not belong, that would definitely be the time to cancel that credit card have a new one issued. we are recommending for people with their debit card to be more cautious. because the protections aren't the same, and the money in your bank account tends to be the money you are living off of, paying your represent, your line of credit tends to be for purchases, so issue doesn't seem to be as devastating for people when they have a line of credit that's frozen or they can't use. but if it is your bank account that can be much more difficult. so we are encouraging people to talk to their bank. change their pin number. and be more cautious. >> and it is possible to follow through if hackers are able to get your identity through your credit card then they may be able to follow through to find other information. which is the holy grail. >> that's correct.

we appreciate your being with us tonight. >> thank you. >> after the break, on america tonight, an al jazeera exclusive, silent suffering, our in depth investigation into the horrifying automobiledsy facing the death behind bars. >> start with one issue ad guests on all sides of the debate. and a host willing to ask the tough questions and you'll get... the inside story ray suarez hosts inside story weekdays at 5pm et / 2pm pt only on al jazeera america was 17. flat out my whole life. >> reporter: motorcycle riding free spirits like this guy need health insurance too. that's is the message coming from insurers with commercials aimed at people who may not have been covered in the past.

they offer protection and maybe a little piece of mind. >> to go forward sometimes you have to go back to a time when knew. >> reporter: with 30 million potential new customers, insurance companies are expected to shell out half a billion dollars next year on tv advertising alone. >> insurance companies see opportunity in the potentially millions of new customers, and if you are an insurance company in this country, this is your growth opportunity. >> reporter: insurers, state exchanges, and the feds collectively purchased $194 million wort of ads just

we bring you the story of one attempt to navigate the system without being able to hear his own trial, and his struggle to then survive in prison. >> . >> i am a deaf person. things happen in prison that you never see. they don't tell you -- you have to watch out for yourself. somebody has a knife, because --

there's no. >> they want everything that you have. you fight for the shower. you fight for your food. there is no question that individuals with disabilities in prisons and jails face very very scary life. we know from the research that's been done on the national level, about prison rape and abuse. that individuals who have mental illness individuals who are elderly, individual whose

have a physical disability, or who have a mental disability, are often times targets for sexual abuse and assault. >> it is laughable because it seems so completely far out there, far fetched that we could be treating people the way we do in prisons not just the deaf, and deaf behind, and blind, the way we treat men and women in the prison system is terrifying. i am the founder and president of heard, helping educate to advance the rights of the deaf. it is a nonprofit that focusing on correcting and preventing deaf and wrongful convictions and deaf prisoner abuse. wright now we have just under 300 men and women

who are deaf, deaf blind, and hard of hearing in our data base. the percentage of them that has been raped is well above 80%. rape or abused in some manner, it is mind blowing. >> watch the door. somebody is there. i don't know. they come in like that. i'm fighting and fighting. and -- the other man coming in. to reach him. and i can't reach him. i pass out. and i wake up, and there's blood on my face, they raped me. the shower i finish, i come out, all the people were standing around watching. purple, they beat me.

back to my room, i get up in bed. i stayed there three or four days. i didn't dare move, nothing. >> i met felix in june of 1998. i got a package a little note that said this is the charity case, see what you can do. so i looked at the case, i started checking it out, and just grabbed me. i said that's going to be my son, because he has been through so much without nobody. this is the box with his trial files from his 1983 trial. the attorney three times alerted the court can and the state is that his client could not

understand, could not hear. and that he coted not assist him in his trial. which is a 6th amendment violation. he says i didn't hear the testimony. he says i didn't hear them say anything, so he did not hear any witness testimony. an interpreter would have changed the results. when you see the things going on, it makes you question your christianity. for me it strengthens it, sometimes i fall.

it is the picture of heartbreak. >> he joins us here, it is not just felix. you have met so many others with disabled hearing impairs who are in isolation, in isolation. >> tens of thousands of people are hard of hearing so as there is is this yelling back and forth, so almost an epidemic that people can happen right. if they get out it doesn't necessarily ever come back, so -- >> for these guy whose have lost their hearing whether it was before they went into prison, or

once in it, it must be terrifying to know what is going on around you. >> felix, after he was raped, was -- in his cell, and he was so scared that he would get down close to the ground and he would listen against the wall, for movements for the sound of movement, or the feeling of movement. >> yes, the vibration. what is so crazy about felix, when he was in trial, they gave him a hearing aid, and one person said, there weren't any batteries in it, and the judge said turn uhl the volume, so of course when you turn up the volume for a deaf person it doesn't do anything but produce noise. >> he was unable to defend himself. >> there was no way he could participate in his trial. how did you become so involved in the deaf inmates and their situation? >>

i started writing about the deaf. people using sign laing and reading lips which then was a pretty big deal. i kept sampson tact with them, and the only reason i was able to do anything with this at all was because one of the people i had met, but he helped me, he guided me, and he put me on to felix. >> does the outside world understand how many people are deaf, and how many of them are living in this in the terrible challenge of just trying to be able to communicate with the world around them. i don't think anybody has

a clue. felix is in florida prison, i asked how many people are deaf in florida, and they said they didn't know. nobody tracks it. >> and as a matter of fact, in the federal prison system the best i could figure out is they don't have any programs in place to deal with the deaf. and the warden who is experienced in dealing with deaf people, said look, the only way the deaf make it in prison is if they stick together. they will make it.ogether the basic prison policy is to break up any kind of friendships. in the case of sign language, there are prison people who actually think that it is a code. and that they are plotting an escape.

it is a very difficult situation, thank you for being leer. >> thank you. we will continue al jazeera's exclusive work stories of abuse, anding any. in this disturbing investigation. it was the most horrible experience i have ever had in my life. >> the deaf in prison, struggling to be heard. their desperation for help and what is being done. we will have more of oryx collusive series friday on america tonight.

>> a catastrophic and mission ato theater. at least 80 people were injured.

add new mexico to the states now allowing gay marriage. it is the 17th state to legalize same sex unions and the very first to do in the southwest. the obama administration is cautious about this, as are the american people. the worst congress ever, but that are words being used to describe the 113 congress. you can blame their unlucky number, but instead we invited congressional correspondent to understand what is wrong. we hear about the approval rating which

seems to be lower and lower all the time. but it is at 85% disawe proving is this bad or really bad or really bad than worse. >> of course, the real moment comes when you go into the voter booth, and who you choose to vote for. jew look at the cycle they have gotten in, the agenda, look at immigration reform, a huge goal of the white house climate change, we have talks about climate change lately. it is often just a stalemate. >> when you say nothing is getting done. it is easy for people to say nothing happened is it really -- is it really

less than we have seen in previous terms in. >> yes, it is. if you look at the actual productivity they are passing less bills. >> so some of the things we have heard about, patty murray, we have been talking here on this program about the great budget deal and how this is headed off, and i said to you at the time, you know, we have left a lot about this, is the public left with cynicism? is this really a deal that is done? >> well, rewill be back in another fight come the new year, because this is a two year spending deal. be the appropriate ray tors have to hash out the details. but the next big fight will with other the debt ceiling. congressman paul ryan has already said, republicans want something, in return for raising the debt ceiling.

now senator murray food, looked ahead to what democrats still want to get done, she did tout a bipartisan kumbaya if you will. >> i think we can agree we took an important step forward. in reaching an agreement for the next two years we did a number of things that bode well for the coming here and for our ability to address jobs and the economy, as we now go forward. first of all, we showed the american people that members of congress can work together. >> if it is something modest. so the very modest proposal. but democrats in the sate breath were talking about the things that were unaccomplished this term. unemployment benefits long term that was a huge priority for democrats it didn't get renewed. they are not giving up on it.

yo will see ads sponsored by groups. people were outraged by that, that got traction, because it hit that cord, the question is are americans just too over this process, and frankly, a lot of americans are happy when congress isn't getting things done. because they don't like the trajectory. >> and that goes to the fight inside the party. a lot of key figures, who have relied themselves further to the tea party side. how is this impacting what is going on and what will happen going

forward? >> well, dishuge because we saw this big moment, -- there's a reason why republicans care about those groups, those groups spend money back at home districts. they have targeted people like minority leader mitch mcconnell. he is a freshman, but when he took to the floor, the tried to link defunding obama-care, to funding the federal government, it got a lot of play. it wasn't a classic filibuster buzz his big talkathon was everywhere. >> i do not like them sam i am, i do not like green eggs and ham. would you like them here or there. >> i would not like them anywhere, i do not like

green eggs and ham, i do not like them sam i am. >> now that is called talking until it hurts. now the ironic thin about that, that doctor sues trying something they are not that sure of. but he went to the mat for this, and he picked a big fight. and republicans went along with him, so the house pivot and say we won't go ahead and fund the government unless we can get what they want, they didn't get what they wanted. john boehner blew up and said look, that didn't work, so you are seeing -- but it is a question of does the tail wag the dog, and you will see the tea party folks still having a lot of sway, immigration will be a key one. will john boehner bargain? will house republicans work on it, or will they take a hard line, that is one to watch. >> our congressional correspondent, thank you for being here, and giving us your insight. >> and approval rating of

61% would be a boom for any member of congress, but for russian president vladimir putin it is his lowest rating in 13 years. truth be told, it is only 3 points lower than his highest rating which was earned in october of this year. russian president faced his public today addressing them head on for get this, four full hours. the top inks just about everything, praise of efforts on iran, the interest in political exile, rush's $15 billion bail out of ukraine, and a pardon including that of jailed russian oil tycoon. the pardon is suspected by many as something of putin putting an international face on ahead of the winter olympics. pet project that he had pushed hard for.

the cost is just one of several that mr. putin announced. a punk prayer about the band, he joins us here now. kid this come as a surprise? somebody watches the band closely? >> nothing creases to amies. we are reeling from the shock of it all. it is incredible that they have been telling people that they got with their deserve. people in russia, i think pretty much went along with it, and now -- he is -- in this act of mercy he is asking us to change our views. so clearly it is directed at an international audience, i think people in russia must be quite confused not knowing what touchy about them that have been demonized and now suddenly they are

deserving of mercy. >> if they are allowed to go, how much of their time is left? how much of a term do they have left? >> an amnesty for something they served 95 pegs of the sentence is not much of an amnesty. gnash's mother has gone to the prison, and nadia's husband, and i hope within the next few days they would let them out. it wouldn't be surprised if they keep them around for days or weeks. we will see, hopefully they will be out. and it is a good thing for the other people that were released as well, but it obviously cannot be seen in any other light. as you say, to try to smooth the ground a bit, which so far has been going quite badly for him. >> obviously, a lot of international pressure other the issue of the gay laws in russia, and the pressure and propaganda against gay activists there, talk to

us about mr. putin's demeanor and what he is doing here? in this case it was four hours and he seemed actually quite jovial. was that an act? i am no expert of his behavior. clearly the olympics do seem important to him, and hen't bas them to go well, as i say, i don't think any of these actions were directed at the domestic audience. but to send a message that although we have done these horrible things we stopped doing it to some of them. so we should come along and embrace us. so it's confusing in a way. but if he pulled it off, clearly, it could be very clever, but i don't think anybody is fooled by a change of policy, or kind of a return to a more

democratic just society. i don't think that's what today signals. >> what about the women. as a result of this, whether they go free early, or finish out their terms. they are certainly not going to retreat, won't they get into the same cycle again. >> well, what is amazing about these women is they kept it going, everybody in prison. they stage add number of hunger strikes, demonstrating on behalf of their fellow inmates so even behind bars their activism is unrestrained, i have no doubt that outside of prison they will continue to try to improve the social justice within russia. which is their aim. and we all respect them is are amazed quite frankly at their tens that tip, and the pure heroism. we were hearing

conditions for disabled people, so this country is no stranger to that either. it's ironic the reason they gave this was to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the russian institution. perhaps it would have been a better thing to abide by the constitution, support justice system, and proper justice within russia would have been a better way to celebrate, rather than these token gestures which is certainly the case, the fact they had another two months to go out of two years they have already served is ridiculous to see that. >> so many times leadership has been found that by imprisoning someone you put more attention on them. i think of nelson mandela in the last few days how his quiet term brought more attention, and more sound to that fury, so i

wonder whether in a sense, in a smaller way, pussy riot may have made more of russia the the world aware of what happened. >> well, certainly, that's a consequence of the suffering they have endures over the last couple of years and yeah, their notoriety and their inspirational activities have caught the world's imagination. and i think it's interesting to contrast that with the reaction there is in russia, where as i said before, the vast majority of people think they got what they deserved. and that they should sort of stop complaining basically. so we will see if they have made any lasting impact on russian consciousness. and perhaps inspired a younger generation to ask questions and challenge what are clearly unjust situation in their country.

i doubt it. as i say, clearly there have been some good things that happen today, and people should not have been in prison are being released let's hope. but that doesn't suddenly change the nature, and as i said, i think that would be very sad if i think the world with and indeed russia got the impression, that these few act -- as important they are, they are token acts of mercy, in a very unjust situation. where are there is still if they are not political prisoners people suffering under the justice system, which they have is really unacceptable. as it is in other parts to world as well. if we are talking about russia, they have a huge problem there, and it is -- as i say today's news won't do anything to dissuade anybody any differently i am sure. >>

the director joining us here, thank you, mike. >> thank you. >> when we return, a father and his fate. the pastor makes his first comments to america tonight. and we will meet another religious leader challenging traditions and leading the light of reform.

was -- prince william was dating kate middleton. >> ross shimabuku is here with sport. >> dennis rodman is in north korea to train basketball players for an upcoming player. he wants everyone to know he's not a joke. this is the same guy who dressed up in a wedding gown and will rite a book with his bff, kim jong un. the 52-year-old rodman, who never shies away from the spotlight arrived in north korea

>> evey sunday night,

[to win best foreign picture at the academy awards in 2011. that's noal feat for a film maker. this past, that as he continues to surprise both iranian and american audiences. it is set in paris, but like everything he does, the past is a product of his homeland, an on ryan made, played by an

iranian played by actress -- while the drama is personal, not political, the relationship served as a met fore for east west relations. there is a world of miss understanding teem them, perhaps we can't call it their differences. we see them plays on two sides of a pain, they see each other, but it seems they don't hear each other. is the movie made more than $7 million in american box offices, and earned iran it's fist ever oscar in the best foreign feature category. he dedicated the award to

his people. >> the time and talk of war and intimidation. the name of the country iran, is spoken here through our glorious culture. an asian culture that -- i proudly offer this hour to the people of my country. >> it was celebrated on stale television, despite the earlier efforts to shut down the film pros duction, he had criticized the harsh censorship of fellow film makers. he was banned from making the films for 20 years for what the government described as propaganda against the regime, his documentary, this is not a film which was shot on an i-phone and smuggled out of the country in a cake. according to iranian film expert, making an award winning film under iran censorship codes is

nothing short of a miracle. >> you see here, that's not allowed in iranian movies. >> what? >> and even look at how look how cautious the film maker is by even a mother and son isn't supposed to touch, he get as i way with it in separation. he is quite adepp in navigating through the censorship. it is a skill that he has developed, he managing to be making socially critical films, without sounds critical at all. >>

is power structure is forced to correct itself. had accept sort ship eased? >> it is too soon to judge. whose image of the country has been shaped by the hostage crisis portrayed in the 2013 oscar winning film argue go.

in the united states, there's talk of another oscar, even as relations appear to be improving. if success is any guide, the two countries have much more in common than their governments have led us to believe. that is it for us here. please remember if you would like to comment on any of the stories you have seen here, log on to our website/america tonight. and please join the conversation with us on twitter, or at our facebook page, tonight.

facebook page, tonight. ♪ this is al jazeera. ♪ welcome to the news hour, i'm in doha with all the top stories on al jazeera. no contact and an unknown death toll, the u.n. has a major operation for a star caught up in south sudan fighting. the russian president releases a critic from jail and fighting in a central african republic as soldiers tries to calm the situation and a tur kish tree that