The first thing to do for the snake is read this Care Sheet for ball pythons, it covers all the basics and some more:
http://www.ball-pythons.net/modules/...warticle&id=59
READ THE CARE SHEET IN THE URL ABOVE RIGHT NOW, DON'T EVEN FINISH READING MY POSTIt's a GREAT read, and not too long.
I bet the snake hasn't been eating as well as it would in captivity if it was released/escaped, since they are not native to the US.. Who knows though it might be just as good at finding food here as it is back in africa.
If you plan on keeping and caring for this snake, the first thing to do is get it proper housing detailed in the care sheet. This is pretty essential for keeping a snake healthy or treating a malnourished and/or sick snake. The most important part of BP housing is proper temperatures/humidity and providing two places for your snake to hide. A hiding BP is more likely to be calm. Stress can be a killer.
Secondly, any snake that has been outdoors for extensive periods of time may have picked up parasites of some kind(ticks, mites, and internal parasites are all possibilities). Give the snake a good lookover for outer parasites, and if you plan on making this snake a long term pet for yourself I would get it to a vet to get it checked for internal parasites.
The last bit of advice I have(for now at least) is feeding. Your snake may very well be malnourished. Generally it is a good idea to let a snake get used to the transition to a new home for a week before trying to feed, but you might consider offering some food sooner if the snake looks like it could be in need of some calories. A live mouse no thicker than the widest part of the snake may be your best bet to get your snake to eat. If the snake refuses to eat, it is too stressed out to even consider food. If that happens let the forums know and I'm sure someone more experienced than me can give advice.
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