Although it has been 15 years since a governor has commuted the sentence of an incarcerated inmate in Wisconsin, Gov. Jim Doyle could potentially shorten two sentences in his final weeks as governor.

Doyle, six weeks left in office before Gov-elect Scott Walker takes the wheel, has applications for executive clemency on two separate 80-year armed robbery prison sentences awaiting his decision.

A Wisconsin governor may not commute a sentence of a federal crime or a crime committed in another state, according to the governor’s office.

Both men claim their sentences are excessive and are asking Doyle to reduce their time to 20 years, time both have already served, according to the Associated Press.

Walker Johnson, 40, was convicted of four felony robbery counts in 1990 and sentenced to four consecutive 20-year sentences in prison, according to online court records.

Darryl L. Norton, 45, was also convicted of robbery and sentenced to 80 years in prison in 1980.

The Pardon Advisory Board made recommendations on the two men’s requests before forwarding them on to Doyle, but the final say rests with the governor.

The board appears especially anxious to push through as many pardons and clemency requests as possible before Walker takes office following attempts Wednesday to review pardon applications without face-to-face interviews.

Following a complaint by Cindy O’Donnell, the Department of Justice representative on the board, the board decided to reinstate the interview process.

While Doyle has handed out 223 pardons since taking office in 2003, he has never commuted a sentence, and neither did his predecessor, Scott MacCallum.

Meanwhile, former Gov. Tommy Thompson commuted seven sentences while in office.

The most recent commuted sentence was in 1995, when Thompson commuted the life sentence of a convicted murderer to 25 years, although the man died behind bars 12 years before the commuted sentence was up, according to AP.

Still, the pardon system in Wisconsin is not a free pass.

A pardoned individual may have their firearm rights restored, hold public office and obtain certain licenses. However, he or she must still register with the state sex offender registry if they were convicted of a sex crime, according to the governor’s office.

An executive clemency pardon also does not erase, seal or expunge criminal records, although the records do indicate a pardon was issued.