They are successfully kept in captivity and have been for awhile - especially in Europe and Canada.
They are strictly protected in the U.S. and are listed as critically endangered under the Endangered Species Act. You need to go through miles of red tape to get a permit to own one.
I see them occasionally on the San Mateo County coast - around Ano Nuevo Park.
Thamnophis sirtalis infernalis are kept in the hobby and the locality variants - especially those from coastal Marin County - look very much like a tetrataenia.
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