Yep - I am not sure but I think the red-bellied black snake this guy killed was probably protected - but it may differ from State to State. I killed a brown many years ago as I could not get it to leave my front step to my house. I would drag it out with a very long pole and it would go straight back to my welcome mat - with the kids due home from school and my dog going nuts I had to dispatch the poor thing. We lived in that house 7 years and every year had at least 1 brown snake (that we saw) mostly they were just moving through!