I forget what CA requires in order for you to own one, but a rosy boa would be a fairly good option for this. The Mexican subspecies, which ranges into AZ, stays fairly small compared to the subspecies native to CA. Males in general run on the small side as adults, too.
The downside is that neonates can be a bit tricky at times to get eating. Me personally, I'd get one from someone reputable, that has feed records if you go with a young animal.
Some of the north American milk snakes (current taxonomy is splitting up all the former subspecies) would be an option too for smaller size, but they do tend to be flighty at times. Similarly, mountain kingsnakes (not zonata) could be an option too; something like knoblochi (tarahumara mountain kingsnake).
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