Midday Roundup: Germanwings co-pilot researched suicide, cockpit security

Search history. Prosecutors have found Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz researched suicide and cockpit door security before he deliberately crashed Flight 9525 into the French Alps. Investigators found a tablet computer at Lubitz’s apartment in Duesseldorf and were able to reconstruct his internet searches between March 16 and March 23. “(He) concerned himself on one hand with medical treatment methods, on the other hand with types and ways of going about a suicide,” spokesman Ralf Herrenbrueck said. “In addition, on at least one day (Lubitz) concerned himself with search terms about cockpit doors and their security precautions.”

Under attack. Gunmen with the Islamist terror group al-Shabaab attacked a college in northeast Kenya early today. The militants targeted Christians and killed at least 70 people, witnesses said. The president said it is now a hostage situation. The campus has six dorms and at least 887 students. A witness described how the attackers went through the dorms, asking people whether they were Muslim or Christian. “If you were a Christian you were shot on the spot,” he said. “With each blast of the gun I thought I was going to die.”

No true bill. The Justice Department won’t seek criminal contempt charges against Lois Lerner, the former IRS official accused of using her position to antagonize conservative groups. The GOP-controlled House had referred the case to federal prosecutors after lawmakers voted last year to hold Lerner in contempt of Congress for her refusal to testify before a pair of committee hearings. Lerner directed the IRS division that processes applications for tax-exempt status. In 2013 she disclosed agents had improperly singled out applications from tea party and other conservative groups for extra, burdensome scrutiny.

Dry state. California Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday called for cities and towns to cut water use by 25 percent after a survey found the snowpack, which supplies a third of the state’s water, had almost completely vanished. “We’re in a new era; the idea of your nice little green grass getting water every day, that’s going to be a thing of the past,” Brown said, standing on a brown field that would normally be covered in snow that melts its way into taps. Cemeteries, golf courses, and business headquarters must significantly curb their watering of large landscapes. Local governments will replace 50 million square feet of lawns with drought-tolerant plants. And customers can get rebates for replacing appliances with more efficient ones.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.