(AP) — State officials have agreed to consider reducing a Nebraska man’s sentence for playing a role in two cult-related murders in 1985.

The Nebraska Board of Pardons agreed Thursday to hold a commutation hearing in Timothy Haverkamp’s case sometime in the next couple months.

The 51-year-old Haverkamp was paroled in 2009. One of the victims, fellow cult member James Thimm, was beaten, sexually abused, shot and partially skinned while still alive.

Haverkamp is asking the board to commute his sentence so he can be free from supervision. He served 23 years in prison on a sentence of 10 years to life.

After pleading guilty, Haverkamp testified against cult leader Michael Ryan, who remains on Nebraska’s death row. He was also a key witness against Ryan’s son, Dennis Ryan.