Was the stoning of Stephen legal according to Roman law?

59 At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.

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31 Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him

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31 Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” The Jews said to him, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.”

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With one exception, only the prefect had the right to sentence anyone to death. Rome allowed the priests to post warning notices in the Temple, in both Greek and Latin, warning Gentiles to enter no further than a given point. Anyone who transgressed, even a Roman citizen, was subject to immediate execution, without the need to send the culprit to the prefect. Apart from this, the prefect's right to execute was not only exclusive but also absolute; he could execute even a Roman citizen, and he did not have to formulate a charge that would stand up in a court in Rome. In these outposts of empire, the prefect had to be able to do whatever he thought was necessary for the good of Rome, and this included the power to discipline the army.

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